Thai Hypermarket Big C appears to be preparing to enter Malaysia.

According to several websites, Fraser and Neave, a subsidiary of billionaire Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi’s TCC Group, is in the process of completing local regulatory requirements through Ministry of International Trade and Industry to prepare for the launch of Big C Malaysia.

The target opening date has not been confirmed.

However, the first Big C Malaysia Supercentre is expected to be located in Kedah in northwest Malaysia, near the Thai border.

Big C currently operates in Thailand, Vietnam and Laos.

Many Malaysians reportedly cross the border into Thailand to shop at the Big C hypermarket in Hat Yai, in Thailand’s south, giving the company confidence its offer would be popular among residents of its neighbouring country.