Seoul, August 26, 2026 — South Korea's Fair Trade Commission (FTC) has vowed to take all available legal measures, including administrative fines and criminal referrals, against e-commerce giant Coupang following its unprecedented refusal to permit an on-site regulatory inspection.
The standoff erupted when Coupang blocked FTC investigators attempting to look into suspicions that the company unfairly shifted the costs of its price-matching discount coupons onto suppliers. Rejecting the raids on procedural grounds, Coupang argued that the agency failed to provide a mandatory seven-day advance notice under the Framework Act on Administrative Investigations. This marks the first time a company has outright refused an on-site probe since the Large-Scale Retail Business Act took effect in 2012. Coupang has since filed a lawsuit seeking to nullify the investigation alongside an injunction request.
FTC Chairman Ju Byung-kee strongly condemned the move as unprecedented and declared that all lawful countermeasures would be enforced. The FTC maintains that its surprise inspection is entirely lawful, citing statutory exceptions designed to prevent evidence destruction. Meanwhile, ruling party lawmakers are pushing to amend the administrative laws to explicitly exclude retail business investigations from advance notice requirements.
Legal experts note that challenging the FTC's long-standing inspection practices in court will be difficult. However, analysts suggest that Coupang's aggressive pushback may be a strategic effort to frame domestic regulatory pressure as an international trade issue, leveraging its U.S. corporate roots amid ongoing scrutiny from Washington.
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