Pressure is rising after a counter-proposal by Seven & i’s founding Ito family and Itochu Corp. for a ¥9 trillion management buyout collapsed this week, sending the shares tumbling and leaving the company to carefully consider all strategic options — including the proposal from Couche-Tard. Seven & i “remains committed to exploring all opportunities to unlock value for shareholders,” and continues to assess Couche-Tard’s proposal, it said Thursday. It’s engaging constructively with the Canadian company to see if a viable solution can be found to address the antitrust challenges that would likely arise in the US, the retailer said. Couche-Tard has yet to gain access to the Japanese company’s finances, months after proposing a takeover, Bloomberg News reported Thursday, citing people with knowledge of the matter. 7-Eleven International generated about 3% of Seven & i’s ¥128.4 billion of operating profit in the third quarter, which ended in November. It lists 17 countries as potential areas for expansion, primarily in Europe. Seven & i previously relied on licensing agreements for expansion outside of North America and Japan, but has recently switched to investing in companies with supply chains. Last year, the firm bought its licensee in Australia for about A$1.71 billion ($1.1 billion). “We have been in the licensing business for a long time — that’s a low-risk, low-return business,” said Wakabayashi. “Instead, we will examine risks carefully and go after taking returns.” As well as expanding in Europe, Seven & i aims to re-enter Indonesia “at all costs” after it withdrew in 2017, he added.