The American coffee giant has agreed to Starbucks China stake sale business for $4bn to Boyu Capital in a move that would help it to accelerate Starbucks business expansion in the country.

The deal, which was announced on Monday, will see Boyu Capital acquire 60% of Starbucks’ Chinese retail operations via a joint venture.

Boyu Capital is based in Shanghai, Beijing and Singapore, with Reuters reporting that cofounder Alvin Jiang is the grandson of former Chinese President Jiang Zemin.

Starbucks, which has been in China for 26 years, will retain a 40% holding in the business, and said it would continue to have full management Starbucks corporate strategy of its brand and intellectual property in the country.

The company described the deal as the start of a “new chapter” in its history in China, and said it was expected to provide support as it looks to grow and invest further in Starbucks China market.

Starbucks already has approximately 8,000 stores in China and is looking to increase that to between 15,000 and 20,000 in the next few years with the backing of the joint venture.

“Starbucks used to be the first brand to enter into a new city in China, but now they are facing much more competition,” said Jason Yu, managing director of global coffee market in Shanghai.

Yu added that homegrown rivals have expanded more quickly in recent years.

One of Starbucks’ main challengers in the country is Luckin Coffee, a domestic chain with over 26,000 stores across the world, the maturity of which are in China. While Starbucks has tended to concentrate on major metropolises including Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen, Luckin has expanded more snappily into lower municipalities and metropolises.

Price has also been a factor in consumer preference. A basic Americano costs around 30 yuan ($4.21) in Starbucks, but is priced at about 10 yuan ($1.40) in Luckin stores, according to the South China Morning Post. This is in part due to in-app discounts and loyalty perks offered by Luckin.