A Seoul court has temporarily put on hold the Fair Trade Commission’s decision to designate Coupang founder Kim Bom-suk, better known globally as Bom Kim, as the e-commerce giant’s de facto chief, ahead of a hearing on the company’s request to suspend the measure.
The Seoul High Court issued the temporary suspension on Friday in Coupang’s administrative suit against the antitrust regulator, legal sources said. The suspension will remain in place until July 15.
The temporary halt is expected to give the court time to consider Coupang’s separate request for a stay of execution. A hearing on that request is scheduled for June 16.
Under the Administrative Litigation Act, a court may suspend the effect of an administrative decision when a cancellation suit has been filed, and the continued enforcement of the measure could cause irreparable harm, provided there is an urgent need to prevent such damage.
On April 29, the FTC changed Coupang’s designated “same person” from the company itself to Kim, marking the first such change since Coupang was designated in 2021 as a large business group subject to disclosure rules after its assets exceeded 5 trillion won ($3.34 billion).
In Korea’s fair trade system, “same person” refers to the entity deemed to effectively control a business group. The designation is used to determine the scope of affiliates and related disclosure obligations.
The FTC concluded that Coupang no longer qualified for an exception that allowed the company, rather than an individual, to be designated as the controlling entity. The regulator cited the role of Kim’s younger brother, Kim Yoo-seok, a Coupang vice president, saying he was effectively involved in the company’s management.
Coupang has challenged the decision, arguing there is no risk of private benefit because Kim and his relatives do not hold stakes in the company’s Korean affiliates.
The company filed an administrative lawsuit on June 11 seeking to cancel the FTC’s decision, along with a request to suspend its effect.
yeeun@heraldcorp.com
