Japan’s Seven & i Holdings to promote Sogo & Seibu unit to Fortress -sources By Reuters

TOKYO (Reuters) -Japan’s Seven & i Holdings Co Ltd has determined to promote its Sogo & Seibu division retailer unit to U.S. fund Fortress Funding Group, folks conversant in the matter mentioned on Friday.

Seven & i, operator of 7-Eleven comfort shops and the Speedway fuel station chain in the USA, has been beneath strain from activist fund ValueAct Capital to make structural reforms and unload belongings.

The corporate’s board determined at a unprecedented assembly on Friday morning to promote Sogo & Seibu, and particulars can be disclosed within the afternoon, a spokesperson mentioned.

The folks conversant in the matter mentioned the customer was the SoftBank Group Corp managed fund. The value and different particulars of the sale had been nonetheless being labored out, considered one of them mentioned.

The newspaper reported this week that Seven & I might promote the struggling division retailer unit to Fortress for 200 billion yen ($1.4 billion).

SoftBank didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark. Fortress didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark exterior U.S. enterprise hours.

Electronics retailer Yodobashi Holdings is anticipated to put money into the deal and arrange retailers inside Sogo & Seibu areas, the Nikkei mentioned.

Yodobashi representatives couldn’t instantly be reached for remark.

Seven & I shares had been up 0.6% in Tokyo buying and selling in contrast with a 2.7% soar within the benchmark Nikkei index.

($1 = 142.3800 yen)