Temu accused by EU of hindering Dublin raid

The European Union accused Temu on July 31 of failing to provide information during surprise inspections in Dublin linked to a probe into the Chinese-owned online retailer.

The European Commission said it preliminarily found that Temu breached its duty to actively cooperate during inspections carried out from December 2 to 5, 2025, at premises of its subsidiary WhaleCo. The inspections sought evidence in an investigation into whether Temu received “potentially distortive foreign subsidies”.

The commission said Temu did not provide information about the organisation and management of its EU activities, the IT tools and systems used for those activities, and specific books and records on the company's EU operations. The commission said the lack of information prevented it from reviewing material that could be relevant to the investigation.

Temu rejected the findings. The company said it “cooperated fully and complied with all the requests” made during the inspection and said it would analyse the commission's claim.

The accusation concerns only the December 2025 inspections. Temu now has the right to reply to the commission's concerns.

Temu also denied receiving unfair foreign subsidies. The company said its own operating cash flows were sufficient to fund its EU operations.

Temu has 130 million users in the 27-nation EU, making it one of the biggest online retailers in Europe.