According to sources, Seven & i Holdings, the operator of the 7-Eleven convenience store chain in Japan,  is finalizing plans to replace its president.

Sources said that the retail giant is making arrangements to replace President Isaka Ryuichi with Stephen Dacus, who is the lead independent director of Seven & i.

A meeting of the board of directors is expected to be held soon to make a formal decision.

Dacus heads a special committee that is evaluating the takeover bid from Canada's convenience store chain operator Alimentation Couche-Tard.

If Dacus is officially appointed as the president, it will make him the first non-Japanese national to hold the top management position at Seven & i Holdings.

The move is believed to have the aim to further expand the company's overseas strategy and increase its corporate value.