PayPay said Friday it joined a strategic partnership with Seven & i Holdings, SoftBank, Sumitomo Mitsui Card and LY Corp. aimed at expanding digital services across Seven-Eleven Japan stores.

Under the agreement, Seven & i will issue 300 billion yen ($2.02 billion) of common shares to the partners. PayPay and SoftBank will each acquire 100 billion yen of shares, while Sumitomo Mitsui Card will acquire the remaining 100 billion yen, according to a joint statement.

The companies did not disclose the size of PayPay's equity stake.

The companies said the partnership is intended to combine Seven & i's store network with digital technology, artificial intelligence, payments and loyalty services.

The joint statement said SoftBank will support AI-based store services, while PayPay will contribute its payments and loyalty platform.