Convenience store company Seven-Eleven Japan is to become the parent company of its US founder 7-Eleven as Japanese retailer Ito-Yokado reallocates shares within the company.


Ito-Yokado said its restructuring programme would include the sale of US$1.2bn worth of stock and convertible bonds in 7-Eleven to its 50.6% owned subsidiary Seven-Eleven Japan, reported Reuters.


The 38% stake in 7-Eleven will be transferred to Seven-Eleven Japan at the end of March, giving the Japanese firm a 73.8% stake in the US convenience store company.


Ito-Yokado began its relationship with 7-Eleven three decades ago when it became a licensee, but in the late 1990s it helped turn around the US company enabling 7-Eleven to relist on the New York Stock Exchange.