SoftBank, its mobile payments affiliate PayPay, and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group are investing up to 300 billion yen, approximately $1.9 billion, in Seven & i Holdings, the parent company of the 7-Eleven convenience store chain. The investment will come through a new share issuance by Seven & i Holdings, with the parties targeting a signing this summer to modernize the retailer’s payment systems and loyalty points ecosystem. Seven & i operates more than 80,000 stores worldwide, with the majority concentrated in Japan and North America. PayPay is Japan’s dominant mobile payments app, processing an enormous volume of everyday transactions. Japan has one of the world’s most developed legal frameworks for stablecoins and digital assets, having passed legislation in 2023 that allows banks and registered money transfer agents to issue stablecoins.
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