7-Eleven operator under pressure as activist fund demands overhaul

TOKYO -- Japan's largest retail group, Seven & i Holdings, is facing mounting pressure to overhaul its business, with a U.S. activist fund urging it to focus on its lucrative 7-Eleven convenience store chain and spin off its underperforming supermarkets and department stores.

"We believe Seven & i must pursue bold, structural reform, and pursue it with urgency," U.S. investor ValueAct Capital wrote in an open letter to the Japanese retailer that was issued on Tuesday. "The company is strategically unfocused and vastly underperforming its potential."