IRVING, Texas, May 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Earlier today
Acting Chairwoman Slaughter and Commissioner Chopra of the Federal
Trade Commission ("FTC" or the "Commission") issued a statement
suggesting that 7-Eleven, Inc.'s ("7-Eleven") acquisition of
Speedway, LLC ("Speedway") raises competitive concerns in certain
local markets. 7-Eleven is disappointed by the statement as
it fails to acknowledge the facts that led to 7-Eleven closing the
transaction.
To be clear, 7-Eleven was legally allowed to close on the
Speedway transaction today and statements or implications to the
contrary are false.
Not mentioned by Acting Chairwoman Slaughter and Commissioner
Chopra, 7-Eleven and the FTC staff entered into a timing agreement
permitting 7-Eleven to close on May 14th and a
settlement agreement at the end of April that resolved all of the
competitive concerns that the Commissioners reference in their
statement by having 7-Eleven divest 293 fuel outlets. We were
informed that the FTC staff, including leaders in the Bureau of
Competition, recommended that the FTC Commissioners approve that
settlement. In other words, a settlement resolving the
purportedly illegal aspects of the 7-Eleven/Speedway transaction
has already been negotiated and the Commissioners have already
reviewed it. If the Commissioners approve that settlement, it
will resolve all of the competitive concerns that the Commissioners
reference in their statement. 7-Eleven has been operating
under the terms of that settlement agreement since it was signed
and continues to do so.
Despite FTC staff's recommendation that the Commission approve
the negotiated settlement, on May 11, 2021—less than three days
before close—Acting Chairwoman Slaughter and Commissioner Chopra
indicated that they wanted more time to review the settlement
agreement. 7-Eleven took the request very seriously, but such
a last-minute delay would have created enormous disruption to the
lives of our new colleagues at Speedway and to the business.
Given that there was no legal basis for such a delay and
given that 7-Eleven was abiding by the negotiated settlement
agreement, we closed today on schedule.
In their statement, the two Commissioners suggest that 7-Eleven
did not give the Commission enough time to review the
transaction. This ignores the fact that 7-Eleven could have
pushed the Commission to vote on the transaction as early as
January 2021. 7-Eleven chose instead to work with FTC staff
to identify Speedway fuel outlets that might create competitive
concerns if acquired by 7-Eleven and to identify strong buyers for
those outlets. As 7-Eleven worked through this process,
7-Eleven modified its timing agreement with the FTC staff four
times – on February 2, 2021; February 19, 2021; March 22, 2021; and
April 9, 2021. All of the extensions were at the request of
FTC staff. The final April 9, 2021 extension made clear that
7-Eleven planned to close today and yet Acting Chairwoman Slaughter
and Commissioner Chopra waited until May 11 to request that
7-Eleven delay its closing.
To be clear, the only concern that Acting Chairwoman Slaughter
and Commissioner Chopra articulated to 7-Eleven about the
negotiated settlement agreement was that it allowed too much time
for the required divestitures to take place. Ironically,
7-Eleven did not ask for that amount of time. It was proposed
by FTC staff to assist the proposed buyers, and 7-Eleven has
offered several times to change to the originally-anticipated
shorter time frame.
7-Eleven values the cooperative relationship that it has
developed with the FTC staff and applauds them for their hard work
and commitment in reviewing the Speedway transaction.
7-Eleven will continue to work with them to ensure that 7-Eleven
meets its obligations under the negotiated settlement.
In the meantime, we are thrilled to welcome Speedway into the
7-Eleven family.
About 7-Eleven, Inc.
7–Eleven, Inc. is the premier name in the convenience-retailing
industry. Based in Irving, Texas, 7–Eleven operates, franchises
and/or licenses nearly 77,000 stores in 16 countries and regions,
including nearly 16,000 in North America. Known for its iconic
brands such as Slurpee®, Big Bite® and Big Gulp®, 7–Eleven has
expanded into high-quality sandwiches, salads, side dishes, cut
fruit and protein boxes, as well as pizza, chicken wings and mini
beef tacos. 7–Eleven offers customers industry-leading private
brand products under the 7-Select™ brand including healthy
options, decadent treats and everyday favorites at an outstanding
value. Customers can earn and redeem points on various items in
stores nationwide through its 7Rewards® loyalty program with more
than 40 million members, place an order in the 7NOW® delivery app
in over 1,300 cities, or rely on 7–Eleven for bill payment service,
self-service lockers and other convenient services. Find out more
online at www.7–Eleven.com, via the 7Rewards customer loyalty
platform on the 7–Eleven mobile app, or on social media at
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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SOURCE 7-Eleven, Inc.