Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor Followed by Coupang, 3rd in Employment, Visited by US Ambassador: The Reason Explained

Coupang Invests a Total of 6.2 Trillion KRW in Domestic Logistics Infrastructure
Large-Scale Job Creation Funded by Capital Raised from U.S. Listing

Philip Goldberg, the U.S. Ambassador to South Korea, is experiencing product scanning work at Coupang's Daegu Fulfillment Center.

"The Korea-US alliance has rapidly established itself as a global technology and economic partnership, and Coupang is a prime example of this evolution," said Philip Goldberg, the US Ambassador to Korea, during his visit to Coupang's Daegu Fulfillment Center (hereafter Daegu FC) on the 7th. He evaluated Coupang, which operates e-commerce business domestically, as a symbolic company serving as a bridge in Korea-US relations. The reason Coupang is mentioned as a representative company in the Korea-US alliance is that it is solely listed on the US stock market, raising funds that are invested domestically, creating large-scale employment.

According to Coupang on the 8th, since its listing on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in March last year, the company has raised 2.2 trillion KRW in six rounds over a year and a half, sending the funds to its domestic entity to invest in logistics centers. This accounts for 35% of the 6.2 trillion KRW Coupang has invested in logistics infrastructure since its founding. Additionally, $1.22 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) was brought in by Coupang last year, which corresponds to 48% of the total $2.47 billion US FDI inflow into Korea.

The funds raised by Coupang in the US have led to domestic job creation. The number of employees, which was 200 in the first year of establishment, grew to 5,465 in 2015, surpassed 10,000 for the first time in 2017, and currently exceeds 60,000. According to the National Pension Service, Coupang's domestic employment stood at 60,247 as of the end of September, ranking third after Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor Company.

The Daegu FC, visited by Ambassador Goldberg the day before, is a representative example showcasing Coupang's investment and job creation. Coupang invested over 300 billion KRW to build Daegu FC, one of the largest fulfillment centers in Asia, incorporating innovative facilities such as artificial intelligence (AI) and logistics robots across an area equivalent to 46 soccer fields. The directly employed workforce at Daegu FC is expected to reach 2,500, with an estimated 10,000 jobs created both directly and indirectly. This is why Ambassador Goldberg said, "Coupang's direct investment has generated job creation and continuous innovation."

Moreover, the opening of Coupang Daegu FC in March has opened new sales channels for local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the surrounding area. This means providing growth momentum to SMEs, which account for 70% of all Coupang sellers. In fact, while domestic offline SMEs experienced a decline in sales from the third quarter of 2019 to the third quarter of this year, sales of SMEs operating on Coupang increased by 140% during the same period.

Kang Han-seung, CEO of Coupang, said, "Coupang's digital technology breaks the stereotype that technology reduces employment, as it leads to job creation and revitalization of the local economy. Investment in such technology also contributes to improving employees' working conditions and significantly reducing work intensity." He added, "We will continue to strive to ensure that digital innovation benefits consumers, workers, and local communities equally, and to serve as a foundation for job creation, regional economic development, and the growth of small business owners."