The Democratic Party of Korea abruptly postponed the launch schedule of the "Coupang correction task force (TF)," which it had announced to address allegations including Coupang's massive personal data leak and the concealment of industrial accidents.
After U.S. President Donald Trump said he would raise reciprocal tariff on Korea, the Coupang mass personal data leak incident is turning into a U.S.-related diplomatic and trade issue. Some in political circles also say that the "national investigation into Coupang's illegal activities," which had been considered for Feb., is unlikely to proceed smoothly.
According to political circles and related industries on the 28th, the Democratic Party postponed to Feb. 2 the first meeting of the Coupang correction TF, which had been scheduled for the previous day. The party said it took into account the funeral schedule of former Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan, who has died. Kim Hyun-jung, the Democratic Party's floor spokesperson, told reporters the previous day, "(The postponement of the Coupang correction TF launch has) nothing to do at all with President Trump's remarks. As this is the mourning period for the former prime minister, all schedules have been deferred," adding, "We plan to hold the first meeting on Feb. 2."
However, in the retail industry, some say the move may have been influenced by President Trump's sudden message about raising reciprocal tariff. Prime Minister Kim Min-seok held talks with U.S. Vice President JD Vance at the White House in Washington, D.C., on the 23rd local time, where the Coupang issue was mentioned. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 27th local time that Vice President Vance told Kim that the Korean government should not take measures that disadvantage U.S. corporations, including Coupang.
The Coupang correction TF was formed to review the massive personal data leak incident, unfair platform transaction practices, and overall logistics labor issues. The TF's Director General will be Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Nam-geun of the National Policy Committee. In addition to the National Policy Committee, about 10 related standing committee members from the Trade. Industry Energy. SMEs. and Startups Committee and the Climate, Energy, Environment and Labor Committee will join. They plan to discuss measures related to Coupang separately from the national investigation into Coupang.
Amid this, whether the national investigation into Coupang scheduled for Feb. will proceed is unclear. There are quite a few variables to overcome before entering a full-fledged national investigation.
The first issue being raised is diplomatic and trade risk. On the 26th local time, U.S. President Trump wrote on Truth Social, "The Korean National Assembly did not approve a historic trade agreement," adding, "Accordingly, I am raising all tariff imposed on Korea—including automobiles, lumber, and pharmaceuticals—from the current 15% to 25%." Earlier, on the 22nd local time, Coupang's U.S. investors asked the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) to investigate the Korean government's measures regarding Coupang, requesting appropriate trade remedies including tariffs and other sanctions.
As the Coupang situation begins to be discussed in the context of U.S. trade, there is growing recognition in political circles that wording or the level of criticism during the national investigation into Coupang could inadvertently escalate into a diplomatic issue. The government also moved to calm the situation, saying there would be "no discriminatory treatment." The Democratic Party is emphasizing that the national investigation is a matter under domestic laws and systems, but the burden has grown because a national investigation inevitably carries political messaging.
In addition, the targets and scope of the national investigation are cited as reasons for difficulties. According to a report by the National Assembly Research Service, the core verification targets of the Coupang national investigation are ▲ personal information protection and information security systems ▲ employment structure in the logistics industry and prevention of industrial accidents ▲ fair transaction order and issues related to corporate groups. The problem is that all three issues are broad and complex enough to warrant standalone national investigations. There is also a possibility that the scope of the national investigation will expand beyond a single company to the entire platform industry. Inside and outside political circles, some warn that as the issues in the Coupang national investigation multiply, the original goals of establishing Coupang's responsibility and improving systems could become blurred.
Coupang acknowledges some fault but is dissatisfied with what it sees as excessive pressure from the government and political circles when the cause of the incident and responsibility have not been clearly investigated. Police are stressing cooperation with Interpol, but they have not even been able to summon the Chinese suspect.
A platform industry official said, "If the national investigation into Coupang begins, there is a possibility that those surveyed and the scope of discussions will naturally spread to other platform corporations," adding, "As the discussion could expand from establishing responsibility for a specific company to regulations across the industry, the sector is watching closely."
Separately from the national investigation, administrative procedures are also a variable. The Korea Fair Trade Commission plans in May to decide whether to designate Bom Kim, chair of Coupang Inc., as the same person. If designated as the same person, various regulations under the Fair Trade Act, such as restrictions on funneling internal deals, will be fully applied. As administrative procedures proceed independently of the national investigation, politics, judiciary, and administrative risks are operating simultaneously in a complex phase.
A political source said, "Regardless of the public consensus on the need for a national investigation into Coupang, it is difficult to accelerate it as diplomatic and trade variables, issues over the scope of those surveyed, and administrative procedures are all entangled," adding, "If a full-scale national investigation is pursued without selection and concentration, side effects could outweigh tangible results."
Shin Yul, a professor in the department of political science and diplomacy at Myongji University, said, "We cannot conclude that President Trump's tariff remarks are because of the Coupang situation, but the very fact that it has begun to be mentioned intertwined with trade issues will be a heavy burden for the ruling party." He added, "Given that an investigation is already underway, it is more likely they will adjust the timing and intensity rather than push ahead with a national investigation."