Republic of Korea: Fair Trade Commission imposed KRW 2.185 billion administrative surcharge on Coupang for violations of Act on Fair Transactions in Large Retail Business

On 26 February 2026, the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) imposed corrective orders and an administrative surcharge of KRW 2.185 billion on Coupang Co., Ltd. for violations of the Act on Fair Transactions in Large Retail Business. The case concerns direct-purchase transactions in the online retail sector and affected 25'715 suppliers across 508'752 transactions. The KFTC found that between January 2020 and October 2022, Coupang set internal margin targets and, where those targets were not met, required suppliers to reduce supply prices or bear advertising, promotional programme, and data service fees. The KFTC also found that between 21 October 2021 and 30 June 2024, Coupang delayed statutory payments for goods by between 1 and 233 days and failed to pay statutory late interest amounting to KRW 853'285'820. In addition, between September 2020 and June 2024, Coupang did not refund KRW 536'793'079 for undistributed promotional products under its customer review programme. The KFTC ordered cease-and-desist measures, supplier notification, payment of unpaid amounts, implementation of compliance training, and the administrative surcharge.