Seven & i Holdings is negotiating to invest several hundred billion yen, worth several billion dollars, to acquire a double-digit ownership stake in Zabka Group, Poland’s largest convenience store operator, according to multiple sources reporting July 16–17, 2026 [1, 2, 3].
Zabka Group operates between roughly 10,000 and 13,000 franchised stores across Poland, where it holds about 11% of the country’s grocery retail market [1, 2, 3]. The company’s shares surged 11-16% on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, lifting its valuation to around 32.7 billion zloty (approximately $8.7 billion) following reports of the talks [4, 5]. Meanwhile, shares of Seven & i rose 3% to 5% in Tokyo on the news [6, 4].
Seven & i aims to use the investment to speed up its expansion in Eastern Europe. Poland would be its fourth European market after Sweden, Denmark, and Norway [2, 7]. The Japanese retail group plans to grow its footprint from 19 to 30 countries and regions by 2030 as part of this overseas growth strategy [2, 3].
Since its 2021 acquisition of Speedway petrol stations in the US, Seven & i has not made a major international convenience store investment until now [6, 5]. The company has faced pressure from investors amid sluggish share prices, including a rejected takeover bid from Canada’s Alimentation Couche-Tard in 2024 [2, 3]. Bernstein analysts said Seven & i is "plugging its largest remaining weakness with outside capital and installing friendly shareholders as a takeover countermeasure" [6]. Yamawa Securities analyst Naoshi Matsumoto added, "Amid overall market weakness due to falling semiconductor stocks, defensive sectors centred on domestic demand are being bought." [6]
Seven & i is also reportedly considering selling stakes to SoftBank Corp, PayPay Corp, and Sumitomo Mitsui Card to boost profits and capture more consumer spending, though these discussions are preliminary [2, 6, 3].
The talks remain ongoing, and Seven & i and Zabka have not officially confirmed the deal. The parties could still decide not to proceed [2, 3, 5].
