7-Eleven considers buying a slice of Bill Express

Convenience store chain 7-Eleven is looking at acquiring part of collapsed payments company Bill Express.

Convenience store chain 7-Eleven is looking at acquiring part of collapsed payments company Bill Express.

The convenience retailer has an exclusive option with PPB to look at the assets of Bill Express. It is specifically interested in the technology and certain commercial aspects of the electronic distribution of vouchers and payments and hopes to make a final decision later this month on a possible bid.

“7-Eleven has co-ordinated a team of industry specialists to determine the viability of the proposal and to see whether 7-Eleven can address customers’ on-going hardware payment commitments and provide continuity of service and supply,” the company said in a statement.

“These specialists are not related in any way to the previous management of Bill Express and related companies.”

Bill Express collapsed in early July with debts of more than $180 million, leaving around 3500 newsagents and a string of small companies scrambling to set up alternative payment networks. The company’s 14,000 customers have been unable to transact on the company’s system since it entered administration.

7-Eleven said there would be no change in its current operations if it acquired any of the services of Bill Express as it is already a re-seller of telecommunications products and other electronic vouchers through its 360-store network.

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• ANZ faces big losses from Bill Express collapse
• Newsagents and small telcos hit by Bill Express collapse