STRATEGIC PARTNERS
December 6, 2001
TOKYO -- Lawson Inc, operator of Japan's second-largest convenience-store chain, said it has reached a servicing agreement with IBM Japan for ATMs at its stores, according to a Reuters report.
Lawson plans to install ATMs in 4,000 stores by February 2003, and has already installed machines in 340 stores nationwide.
Lawson said it had agreed on a seven-year contract with the Japanese unit of International Business Machines Corp.
Lawson ATM Networks, a new company set up by Lawson, will supervise the project. It will work with alliance banks including Tokyo-Mitsubishi Bank, Mitsui-Sumitomo Bank, Sanwa Bank and Fuji Bank, according to Reuters.
Lawson is a late entrant in the ATM game. Seven-Eleven Japan Co Ltd, operator of Japan's leading convenience-store chain, plans to install 3,600 ATMs of IY Bank, the banking unit giant retailer Ito-Yokado Co Ltd , by the end of 2002's first quarter.
