The National Tax Service has launched a large-scale tax audit into Coupang. Following the personal data leak, the audit is looking into Coupang's domestic and overseas transactions across the board, and the transaction structure with the U.S. headquarters is also said to be included in the review.
According to the industry on the 22nd, the Seoul Regional Tax Service's Investigation Bureau 4 and the International Transaction Investigation Bureau deployed about 150 investigators on Tuesday morning to Coupang's headquarters in Songpa-gu, Seoul, and its logistics subsidiary Coupang Fulfillment Services (CFS). The National Tax Service reportedly secured accounting records and materials related to internal transactions.
Investigation Bureau 4 is an organization mobilized when tax evasion is suspected or abnormal fund flows are in question, unlike routine periodic tax audits. That is why this audit is being interpreted as a special tax investigation that goes beyond a simple periodic review.
The nominal target of the audit is Coupang Fulfillment Services, but the industry views it as effectively examining Coupang's overall business structure. In particular, with the International Transaction Investigation Bureau joining the effort, the group-level profit transfer structure, including transactions with Coupang's U.S. headquarters, is said to have become a key focus of the review.
The International Transaction Investigation Bureau is an organization dedicated to issues such as multinational corporations' transfer pricing, transactions with overseas related parties, and whether income is being transferred abroad. The bureau's participation is prompting interpretations that tax issues surrounding cross-border transactions are included within the scope of the audit.
Regarding the audit, the National Tax Service said it "cannot confirm whether a tax audit is being conducted on an individual taxpayer or its details."