Seven & i Holdings appoints Stephen Dacus as first foreign CEO

Seven & i Holdings, the parent company of 7-Eleven, announced on Thursday that it will replace CEO Ryuichi Isaka with Stephen Dacus, the lead independent outside director. Dacus will become the first foreigner to hold the top executive position at the company, according to domestic media reports.

Dacus will assume his new role on May 27, as detailed in a company filing. Isaka will remain with the company as a senior adviser.

Currently, Dacus is the head of the company’s special committee evaluating a $47-billion takeover bid from Canada’s Alimentation Couche-Tard. He stepped down from the committee on March 5 and was succeeded by independent outside director Paul Yonamine.

In addition to the leadership change, Seven & i announced a share buyback of 2 trillion yen ($13.2 billion) and plans to list its North American subsidiary, 7-Eleven Inc., in the second half of 2026. The company will retain a majority stake in the subsidiary.

Following reports of the impending changes, shares of Seven & i rose 6.11% by the end of the day on Thursday.

The company also disclosed plans to sell its superstore business group, which includes supermarkets, to investment firm Bain Capital for 814.7 billion yen ($5.37 billion). The transaction is expected to be completed by September 2025.

The share buyback will be funded by the proceeds from the sale of the superstore business group and the IPO of 7-Eleven Inc. The buybacks are set to commence once the sale is finalized and are expected to be completed by the company’s 2030 financial year.

Additionally, Seven & i announced a new dividend policy, stating it will maintain or increase the per-share dividend amount over time based on cash flow generated from ordinary business operations.

In an update on the takeover bid by Canada’s Couche-Tard, Seven & i’s special committee reiterated its commitment to exploring all value creation opportunities, including active and constructive engagement with Couche-Tard. The committee noted that resolving the serious U.S. antitrust challenges any transaction would face remains a consistent hurdle.

Seven & i revealed it has been collaborating with Couche-Tard to develop a potential divestiture package that would ensure effective competition between Couche-Tard and the buyer of the divested stores, even after a transaction.

The $47-billion bid by Couche-Tard is the only active offer for Seven & i after a management buyout attempt by the founding family failed to secure financing last week.