Seven & i Holdings Names New CEO
7-Eleven parent company Seven & i Holdings has named a new chief executive as the company also revealed plans to take the company public in North America.
Stephen Hayes Dacus, currently chairman of the Board as the lead independent outside director, will succeed Ryuichi Isaka as president & representative director and CEO. The appointment will be effective after the group’s annual meeting. Isaka will continue to serve as a senior advisor.
“The Group is executing key actions that are concrete, actionable, and value accretive,” said Isaka. “We have been on a journey to explore opportunities that create the most value for our shareholders and enhance our customers’ experiences around the world. This is the right time to move these initiatives forward, and the management team is excited to execute our transformation strategy while remaining focused on identifying avenues to continue driving shareholder value.”
Dacus also recently served as chair of a special committee to review all takeover bids received by Seven & i. This included bids from Alimentation Couche-Tard (ACT) and a bid led by Seven & i Vice President Junro Ito along with any initiatives that could have been implemented on its own.
“The special committee has been committed to exploring all value creation opportunities, including active and constructive engagement with ACT and will continue to do so,” Dacus said. “The initiatives management have announced today are crucial steps in simplifying our group structure and unlocking shareholder value. As there is no assurance that a third-party transaction will ever become actionable or be in the best interest of the group’s shareholders and other stakeholders, the special committee fully endorses these management initiatives to unlock shareholder value at this time.”
At issue with the Couche-Tard takeover bid are concerns raised by Seven & i officials regarding possible antitrust challenges in the U.S.
Dacus said the parties have been working to put together a potential divestiture package of “unprecedented in scope and size” that could be divested to a viable, credible, and independent buyer in a manner that could be stood up to operate effectively on a go-forward basis and assure competition between ACT and the buyer of the divested stores, even after a transaction.
7 & i Holdings will continue to constructively engage with ACT to determine whether a credible and actionable remedy and divestiture package can be achieved, company officials said.
Additionally, following the appointment of Dacus, 7 & i Holdings will pursue an initial public offering of SEI, the company’s North American convenience store business better known as 7-Eleven. The company is aiming for the IPO by the second half of 2026.
“The board is confident that an IPO at this time is the best path to unlock significant value for Group shareholders and position SEI for accelerated growth,” company officials said. “An independent SEI will have increased financial flexibility and greater decision-making autonomy to capitalize on its market leadership as the largest convenience store chain in the attractive North American market with strong brand recognition and best-in-class digital offering in the industry.”
