The billionaire Issa brothers, who bought Asda in a £6.8bn deal last year, are weighing up a merger of the supermarket giant and their EG Group, according to reports.
The pair are said to be looking at strategic alternatives for Lancashire-headquartered EG Group.
A Bloomberg UK report said a potential merger of the two businesses could value it at around $35bn.
READ MORE: Former M&S boss Lord Stuart Rose named Asda chairman by billionaire Issa brothers
The reports come after EG Group pulled out of its planned £750m acquisition of Asda's forecourt business in October.
The Issa brothers started out with a single petrol station in Bury, Greater Manchester, before building Euro Garages into a national chain.
They first partnered with TDR Capital to form EG Group and acquired a string of sites across Europe.
Mohsin and Zuber Issa's acquisition of Asda in 2020 was backed by the buyout firm. They own the business separately from EG Group.
EG Group, which is headquartered in Blackburn, now also includes Leon and the UK's second-largest bakery business, Cooplands.
The business recently hit the headlines after announcing it was to create almost 100 jobs after expanding its franchise deal with Pizza Hut.
At the start of November the group agreed to acquire 34 fuel and convenience store locations in the US.
