The source says C&S and SoftBank are close to an agreement to buy stores from Kroger and Albertsons

Sep. 5 (Reuters) – C&S Wholesale Grocers, backed by SoftBank Group (9984.T), is close to a deal to acquire stores that Kroger (KR.N) and Albertsons Companies Inc (ACI.N) are looking to sell to, a source familiar with the matter said. Reuters told Reuters on Tuesday that the company will receive regulatory approvals for their $25 billion merger.

The value of the transaction and the number of stores involved in the transaction cannot be known immediately.

C&S lost one of its largest customers, Ahold Delhaize (AD.AS), when the supermarket group decided to move to self-distribution in 2019. C&S can help offset this loss through acquisitions.

Bloomberg News, which first reported the talks, said C&S could announce a deal to acquire most or all of the stores the supermarket operators are offloading on antitrust grounds as soon as this week.

Kroger & Albertsons, C&S and SoftBank did not respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Reuters reported in February that Kroger and Albertsons were moving forward with plans to sell between 250 and 300 stores that they hope will ease U.S. antitrust concerns about their merger.

The stores the two companies might sell could be worth more than $1 billion, and are located in all the regions where the two companies operate, such as the Pacific Northwest, Southern California, Phoenix and Chicago.

In March, the two companies reaffirmed that they would divest some stores to obtain the regulatory approval required to proceed with the merger.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which is reviewing Kroger’s proposed $24.6 billion takeover of Albertsons, is under pressure from some US lawmakers and consumer advocacy groups to block the deal over concerns it could lead to higher grocery prices.

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