South Korea fines Baemin and Coupang a combined 631.9 billion won ($466 million) for allegedly restricting competition. The country’s Fair Trade Commission (FTC) announced the penalties on Monday.
The regulator will fine Woowa Brothers, operator of Baemin, 331.1 billion won ($243 million). Meanwhile, Coupang will pay 300.8 billion won for practices involving its food delivery platform, Coupang Eats.
The FTC alleged that both companies abused their market dominance. Specifically, they pressured partner restaurants to offer terms at least as favourable as those available on competing platforms.
FTC flags most-favoured-nation requirements
The regulator said the companies imposed so-called most-favoured-nation (MFN) requirements on partner restaurants. These conditions covered menu prices, minimum order amounts and other trading terms.
According to the FTC, such requirements weakened competition and increased barriers for new market entrants. The watchdog also said the practices contributed to higher food prices.
Coupang allegedly enforced these conditions between July 2023 and January 2026. It removed restaurants’ “Wow restaurant” status when they failed to comply.
The designation allowed Coupang Wow members to access delivery-related benefits at participating restaurants. Consequently, losing the status risked reducing restaurants’ sales.
Baemin imposed similar conditions between May 2024 and October 2025. It restricted delivery fee discounts for Baemin Club subscribers to orders from compliant restaurants.
Baemin and Coupang control over 90% of market
The FTC said Baemin and Coupang Eats held 58.45 per cent and 34.44 per cent of South Korea’s food delivery app market, respectively, by order value in 2025.
Together, the platforms accounted for more than 90 per cent of the market. Therefore, the regulator said their simultaneous MFN requirements restricted competition in a manner similar to collusion.
The watchdog also highlighted the growing share of restaurants participating in the platforms’ membership programmes.
The proportion of partner restaurants designated as Wow restaurants rose from 13 per cent in July 2023 to 94 per cent in October 2025. Similarly, Baemin Club participation increased from 63 per cent in May 2024 to 80 per cent in January 2025.
The FTC said restaurants had limited bargaining power. Exclusion from membership programmes could cause a significant decline in sales.
“The FTC has concluded that Baemin and Coupang abused their dominant market positions by imposing unreasonable conditions on partner restaurants that deviated from conventional trade practices,” the watchdog said.
Baemin also sanctioned over delivery service practices
The FTC separately sanctioned Baemin over its treatment of two delivery services. These included Market Place (MP), where restaurants arrange deliveries themselves, and Own Delivery (OD), where Baemin handles deliveries.
The regulator alleged that Baemin effectively forced restaurants to shift from MP to OD services.
According to FTC estimates, Baemin’s revenue represented 28 per cent of transaction value for OD orders in 2024. In comparison, its share stood at 7.8 per cent for MP orders.
The penalties address the regulator’s concerns over platform dominance and restrictions on partner restaurants. The action also highlights growing scrutiny of competition practices in South Korea’s food delivery sector.
