Chairperson Ju Byeonggi Says "Coupang Scores Zero on Social Responsibility... Reviewing Controlling Shareholder Status"

On December 30, Ju Byeonggi, Chairperson of the Korea Fair Trade Commission, stated regarding Coupang, which has caused public controversy due to a personal information leak incident, "It seems the company scores zero points when it comes to social responsibility."

Chairperson Ju made this remark at the National Assembly during a hearing titled "Hearing to Assess Coupang's Security Breach, Personal Information Leak, Unfair Trade Practices, Labor Environment, and Measures to Prevent Recurrence." He added, "The Fair Trade Commission is currently handling related cases, and we will continue to thoroughly monitor corporate social responsibility in the future."

Yonhap News

Regarding the fact that Bom Suk Kim, Chairman of Coupang Inc., who is considered the de facto controller of Coupang, was not designated as the company's 'same person' (controlling shareholder) and that the Coupang corporation itself was exceptionally designated instead, Chairperson Ju confirmed that this would be reviewed again. He said, "In the past, we determined that Chairman Kim or his relatives were not involved in management, so the company met the exception criteria for the 'same person' designation, but we will investigate this matter once again." He also mentioned that the Fair Trade Commission would actively review whether Coupang holds a dominant market position in terms of market share.

At the hearing, Assemblywoman Lee Juhee of the Democratic Party of Korea raised suspicions that Coupang was passing on losses from lowering sales prices to its suppliers. In response, Chairperson Ju said, "An investigation is currently underway regarding the practice of transferring all margin losses to suppliers as advertising expenses. If any violations of the law are confirmed, we will take strict action immediately. We will continue to monitor for any illegal activities."

Additionally, Chairperson Ju refuted claims by some U.S. officials that the National Assembly's various responses to Coupang, such as holding a hearing, constitute "discriminatory measures," stating, "The Fair Trade Commission applies the law equally and without discrimination to both domestic and foreign companies." When a witness, who attended the hearing anonymously for identity protection, requested the creation of a reporting site, claiming to have various materials including recorded calls with Coupang sales representatives and evidence of supplier damages, Chairperson Ju responded, "There is a reporting channel available on the Fair Trade Commission's website, so please submit the materials there."