House report accuses Seoul of targeting Coupang, U.S. firms

SEOUL, July 2 (UPI) -- A Republican-led U.S. House Judiciary Committee report accused South Korea of systematically discriminating against American companies, particularly e-commerce giant Coupang, and claimed Seoul was violating last year's bilateral trade agreement.

The 35-page interim staff report, titled "Closed for Competition: South Korea's Discriminatory Attacks on American-owned Businesses," was released Wednesday and comes in the wake of a massive data breach at Coupang last year that has strained ties between Seoul and Washington.

Much of the report centers on Seoul's investigation into the data leak, which exposed the personal information of roughly 33 million users of Coupang, a U.S.-listed e-commerce company that generates the vast majority of its business in South Korea.

The incident sparked public outrage, consumer boycotts and criticism that the company sought to downplay the severity of the breach. It also triggered a sweeping response by South Korean authorities, including raids, audits and parliamentary inquiries, and quickly escalated into a diplomatic flashpoint.

"After a disgruntled former employee recently accessed Coupang's data systems without authorization, South Korea escalated its attacks into a 'whole-of-government assault on Coupang,'" the report said.

The committee, chaired by Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, accused South Korean officials of spreading false information about the incident and launching dozens of unrelated investigations into the company as part of what it described as a broader pattern of targeting foreign businesses.

"South Korea has a long history of engaging in economic discrimination against foreign companies," the report said.

"These practices include coercive investigation tactics, overly burdensome regulatory requirements, and massive fines and penalties intended to punish American companies and make it harder for them to effectively compete against Korean companies," it added.

South Korea rejected the report as one-sided Thursday, saying it failed to reflect Seoul's position despite months of communication with the committee.

"The report unilaterally accepts Coupang's claims," Foreign Ministry spokesman Park Il said during a regular briefing.

"Investigations and measures concerning Coupang have been conducted lawfully and without discrimination in accordance with domestic law, and our government ensures a fair business environment regardless of nationality," Park said.

Park said Seoul would continue engaging with the House Judiciary Committee, Congress and the U.S. administration to explain its position and emphasize its commitment under last year's U.S.-South Korea joint fact sheet to treat American digital companies in a non-discriminatory manner. He added that the government would work to ensure the Coupang dispute does not negatively affect bilateral security consultations.

Beyond Coupang, the report argues South Korea has for decades used competition policy and digital regulations to disadvantage American companies, citing Google, Apple, Microsoft and Qualcomm and criticizing proposed digital platform legislation modeled on the European Union's Digital Markets Act.

Last month, South Korean authorities fined Coupang more than $410 million -- an amount the report describes as the largest penalty ever imposed on a single company and far exceeding fines levied against South Korean firms for more serious data breaches.

The report also notes that Coupang's market capitalization has fallen by more than 40% since the investigations began, negatively affecting U.S. investors in the company.

Tensions have been amplified by political pressure in Washington, where Coupang has stepped up its lobbying efforts, spending more than $1 million since the data breach came to light in November.

The conflict comes after the trade deal that Washington and Seoul negotiated last year in response to U.S. President Donald Trump's so-called "reciprocal" tariff scheme. In exchange for a lower tariff rate, South Korea pledged to invest $350 billion in U.S. shipbuilding and strategic industries while rolling back certain regulatory burdens.

The House Judiciary Committee argued that South Korea's treatment of Coupang violates commitments made under that agreement.

"South Korea's discriminatory treatment of American-owned businesses directly violates its recent trade agreement with the United States," the report said.

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This story was originally published July 2, 2026 at 6:14 AM.