Coupang wins $4.6b IPO lawsuit in US District Court
The judge stated that the plaintiffs were unable to prove that the company intended to defraud investors or mislead them
By: : Linda John
Update: 2025-09-11 05:45 GMT
Coupang wins $4.6b IPO lawsuit in US District Court
The judge stated that the plaintiffs were unable to prove that the company intended to defraud investors or mislead them
The US District Court, Southern District of New York, has dismissed a lawsuit accusing e-commerce firm Coupang of defrauding shareholders during and after its 2021 initial public offering (IPO).
The Seattle-headquartered firm, operating in several countries including South Korea, had raised US$4.6 billion.
However, shareholders, including several New York City pension funds, alleged Coupang concealed unsafe working conditions, manipulated search results, had employees write favorable product reviews for its private-label brands, and coerced suppliers to raise prices on rival platforms for products it price-matched.
They further claimed that the company’s share price dropped more than 50 percent within a year of the IPO.
But Judge Vernon Broderick in Manhattan ruled that the plaintiffs were unable to prove that Coupang or its executives intended to defraud investors or made materially misleading statements or omissions. The court observed that the company’s statements were broad, aspirational, unspecific, and not considered misleading.
Thus, the bench dismissed all claims against the IPO’s underwriters, including Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, and Allen & Co.