U.S.-listed e-commerce giant Coupang swung to a net loss in the first quarter amid fallout from a massive customer data breach in South Korea. The company posted a $266 million deficit for January-March, compared with a $114 million profit a year earlier. Founder and Chairman Bom Kim said one-time vouchers and temporary inefficiencies from weaker demand were key factors.
Coupang announced on May 6 that first-quarter sales rose 8% year-on-year to $8.5 billion, but it posted an operating loss of $242 million, reversing a $154 million profit from a year ago. This marks the company's largest net and operating losses since Q4 2021. Coupang Korea, generating over 90% of group revenue, faced strong public backlash after disclosing a data breach in November 2025 affecting 33.6 million customers.
Product commerce sales, the core online shopping business, increased 4% to $7.2 billion. Revenue from developing offerings, including Taiwan operations and Coupang Eats, jumped 28% to $1.3 billion. Active customers in product commerce rose 2% to 23.9 million, down from 24.6 million in Q4 2025. The company repurchased $391 million in shares and approved an additional $1 billion buyback program.
In a conference call, Chairman Bom Kim said earnings were hit by one-time vouchers for the breach and "temporary inefficiencies" from weaker demand. "The bulk of the impact (of customer vouchers) is contained to the first quarter, with a modest tail into the first part of the second quarter," Kim stated. He noted recovery of nearly 80% of the WOW membership decline by end-April through returning and new sign-ups, projecting margin expansion to resume next year.
Separately, South Korea's Fair Trade Commission last week designated Kim, a U.S. citizen, as the de facto controlling figure of Coupang, subjecting it to stricter oversight. CFO Gaurav Anand said the company will comply with regulations while planning administrative litigation, arguing U.S. SEC oversight suffices.
