Coupang and Baemin operator face 631.9bn won fines

South Korea's antitrust regulator announced provisional fines totalling 631.9 billion won against Coupang and Woowa Brothers, operator of the Baemin food delivery app, over alleged anticompetitive practices in the food-delivery market.

Coupang faces a provisional fine of 300.8 billion won, or $222 million, while Woowa Brothers faces a provisional fine of 331 billion won.

The regulator said the two companies account for more than 90 percent of the food delivery market and accused them of abusing dominant market positions by imposing unjustified conditions on restaurants using their platforms.

It said Coupang demanded from July 2023 to January this year that restaurants offer terms at least as favourable as those on rival delivery apps, and penalised restaurants that did not comply by excluding them from promotions targeting paid subscribers.

The regulator said Baemin made similar demands, including over minimum order amounts, from May 2024 to October 2025.

Coupang rejected the regulator's view, saying its efforts to provide better services to customers had been deemed unlawful. The company said Coupang Eats would review the final ruling and present its position through legal procedures.

The final fine amounts will be determined before the regulator issues its written decision, with no timetable announced.