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Coupang Reports $266 Million Q1 Loss as Data Breach Costs Hit

One-time vouchers tied to the breach, together with weaker demand, drove the quarter into the red.

Overview

  • Coupang, which reported results Wednesday, logged $8.5 billion in revenue but its largest quarterly net and operating losses since 2021.
  • CEO Bom Kim said roughly $1.2 billion in customer vouchers and a logistics capacity mismatch from the demand slump caused the downturn, with most effects confined to Q1 and a small carryover into early Q2.
  • WOW, the company’s paid membership program, has regained about 80% of lapsed members by late April as sign-ups and cancellations returned to normal levels.
  • The company repurchased $391 million of shares in the quarter, and its board cleared an additional $1 billion buyback.
  • South Korea’s antitrust regulator labeled Kim the de facto controller of a conglomerate, and Coupang said it will seek administrative litigation to overturn the designation.