December 12, 2025
SEOUL – Coupang’s user count has become a closely watched metric of its future viability, following a sweeping data breach that shook customer trust, though no sharp decline signaling lasting damage has yet been observed.
According to market tracker IGAWorks, Coupang’s daily active users surged to an all-time high of 17.99 million on Dec. 1, two days after the company announced that the personal data of over 33 million accounts had been exposed. Industry analysts noted that the spike seems to have resulted from users logging in en masse to check account security, change passwords or deactivate accounts.
Since then, usage has leveled off. As of Monday, the daily user count stood at around 16 million, roughly in line with the 15.7 million to 16.2 million daily users recorded during the week leading up to the breach announcement on Nov. 29.
While competitors such as Gmarket, Naver and Market Kurly saw modest traffic increases during the same period, the shift so far hardly points to a significant migration away from Coupang.
“Many Korean consumers use Coupang alongside at least one other platform,” said one industry insider. “This is less about mass abandonment and more about shifts in trust.”
J.P. Morgan analysts echoed that view, suggesting that Coupang’s market position is holding strong. “We expect potential customer losses to be limited due to CPNG’s unrivaled market positioning and Korean customers being seemingly less sensitive to data breach issues,” they wrote in a note, according to Reuters on Dec. 1. CPNG refers to Coupang’s ticker symbol on the New York Stock Exchange, where it is listed.
As of press time, Coupang shares were trading in the $26 to $27 range, down from a 52-week high of $34.08 in September. On Dec. 1, following the breach announcement, the stock dropped 5.4 percent to close at $26.65.
Coupang’s staying power, experts say, lies in its digital ecosystem, which integrates logistics, commerce and entertainment within a unified membership model.
“Coupang’s dominant logistics network and its bundled membership services, including Coupang Eats and Coupang Play, are still unmatched in the Korean market,” said Lee Eun-hee, a professor of consumer studies at Inha University. “It is still unclear whether the recent incident will trigger a mass exodus.”
Rival platforms are ramping up efforts to match Coupang’s expansive service portfolio, although most of their offerings depend on third-party partnerships.
Gmarket has partnered with CJ Logistics for faster deliveries, while Naver is not only working with Market Kurly for grocery fulfillment, but also enhancing its membership program with offerings from Spotify and Netflix. SSG.com, operated by Shinsegae, plans to launch a rewards-focused subscription that includes Tving streaming service starting in January.
Lee also added that privacy concerns could pose a hurdle for Chinese e-commerce players like AliExpress and Temu as they seek to expand in Korea, particularly as a former Chinese employee of Coupang has been named as a key suspect in the ongoing police investigation.
Amid rising scrutiny, Coupang announced on Wednesday a leadership shake-up ahead of a scheduled parliamentary hearing on Dec. 17, appointing Harold Rogers, chief administrative officer at Coupang Inc., as interim CEO. Rogers is also expected to testify before the National Assembly.
Seen as a key confidant to Coupang founder Bom Kim, Rogers is expected to deliver more substantive testimony than from previous local executives. His presence, however, may lessen the likelihood of Kim appearing at the hearing in person. Kim, who controls 70 percent of Coupang Inc.’s voting rights, has maintained a low profile since the breach surfaced.