The House Judiciary Committee subpoenaed e-commerce giant Coupang on Thursday to obtain its documents and communications with the South Korean government regarding the country’s alleged discrimination against the U.S. technology company.
Reps. Jim Jordan (R-OH) and Scott Fitzgerald (R-WI) led a letter outlining South Korea’s unfair treatment of Coupang.
The Amazon-like company has been subjected to a number of investigations, raids, and inspections initiated by the Korea Fair Trade Commission, the country’s primary antitrust regulator, in recent years. However, regulatory pressure on Coupang intensified further after the e-commerce giant suffered a data breach perpetrated by a former Chinese employee in November.
In the aftermath of the incident, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung openly called for tougher penalties and higher fines against Coupang “so severe that they go out of business,” while his party threatened to criminally indict a Coupang executive who’s a U.S. national.
“Over the past few months, the KFTC and other agencies within the Korean government have escalated their discriminatory attacks on American technology companies, including by threatening U.S. citizens with criminal charges,” Jordan wrote in a letter before stating the purpose of the subpoena.
“To develop effective legislation, including new laws protecting American companies and citizens from foreign governments’ discriminatory laws and enforcement decisions, the Committee must investigate the extent and nature of these efforts and the effect they have on Americans’ right to due process and U.S. companies’ ability to effectively compete in the global market,” he continued.
Congress has repeatedly expressed concern about South Korea’s treatment of Coupang and other U.S. tech companies in letters and hearings. Thursday’s move reflects lawmakers’ significant interest in how foreign allies treat American companies.
Beyond the requested records, the House Judiciary chairman is requiring Coupang Chief Administrative Officer and General Counsel Harold Rogers to appear for a deposition at a future date.
In response to the congressional request, Coupang affirmed its compliance.
“Coupang will fully cooperate with the U.S. House Judiciary Committee investigation, including production of documents and witness testimony as required by the subpoena,” the company said.
Tensions are straining between the United States and South Korea despite both nations having agreed to a comprehensive trade deal last fall.
The trade agreement specifically protects U.S. companies from discrimination by foreign governments and trade barriers in “terms of laws and policies concerning digital services, including network usage fees and online platform regulations,” according to a White House joint fact sheet on the deal.
The Trump administration appears to be taking notice of the situation.
Last month, Vice President JD Vance met with South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok to speak about how the dispute involving Coupang might be resolved. Days later, President Donald Trump raised his tariffs on South Korea by 10% because the country “is not living up” to the trade deal.
TRUMP RAISES TARIFFS ON SOUTH KOREA BY 10% OVER FAILURE TO ENACT TRADE DEAL
“President Lee and I reached a Great Deal for both Countries on July 30, 2025, and we reaffirmed these terms while I was in Korea on October 29, 2025,” he wrote in a Jan. 26 Truth Social post. “Why hasn’t the Korean Legislature approved it?”
Trump did not specifically mention Coupang in that announcement, but the company’s predicament likely influenced his tariff hike on South Korea. The president similarly threatened additional tariffs on the European Union over the 27-member bloc’s digital regulations and taxes that critics argue are disproportionately harming U.S tech companies.