Walmart Inc. aims to list its wholly owned Japanese supermarket unit Seiyu G.K. to raise funds for the retail chain's expansion in Japan, the head of its local subsidiary said Wednesday.

After a meeting with employees to explain Seiyu's medium-term strategy, Lionel Desclee, the president and CEO of Seiyu and Walmart Japan Holdings K.K., said in a statement that the U.S. retail giant will offer less than 50 percent of its shares to the public, without specifying a time frame.

Walmart has not decided whether to list Seiyu itself or its parent, Walmart Japan, a spokesman for Walmart Japan said.