Korea Fines Delivery Apps 631.9 Billion KRW for Unfair Practices
Regulators penalized Woowa Brothers and Coupang for forcing merchants to match prices and conditions across platforms.
The Korea Fair Trade Commission announced on November 9, 2026, that it has imposed a total fine of 631.9 billion KRW on Woowa Brothers and Coupang for enforcing unfair trading conditions on merchants. According to digitaltoday.co.kr, the regulator determined that both companies abused their market-dominant positions by requiring merchants to match prices and service conditions across different platforms.
Under the penalty, Woowa Brothers, the operator of the Baedal Minjok service, received a fine of 331.1 billion KRW. Coupang, which operates Coupang Eats, was fined 300.8 billion KRW.
The regulator's decision follows a series of practices implemented by the companies over the past few years. Between April 2023 and July 2025, Baedal Minjok allegedly displayed inaccurate delivery times for store-delivered orders compared to its own delivery service. Additionally, from July 2023, Coupang Eats excluded merchants from its "Wow" store program if they failed to meet price parity conditions.
Further market adjustments occurred in August 2024, when Baedal Minjok raised its commission rate to 6.8% to align with the 9.8% rate charged by Coupang Eats. Furthermore, between May 2024 and October 2025, Baedal Minjok restricted delivery discounts exclusively to stores participating in its "Baemin Club" tier.
Quick answers
How much was Woowa Brothers fined?
Woowa Brothers was fined 331.1 billion KRW.
Why were the fines imposed?
The Korea Fair Trade Commission determined that both companies abused their market-dominant positions by forcing merchants to match prices and conditions across different platforms.