쿠팡, 해외 계열사에 1.4조원 지출…국내서 번 돈 국외로

Korean e-commerce giant 쿠팡 spent an unprecedented 1.4 trillion won on special relationships with overseas subsidiaries from 2023 to 2025, according to data from the Industrial & Trade Ministry. This marks the first time a domestic e-commerce or platform company has exceeded the 1 trillion won threshold in such transactions. The 쿠팡의 해외 계열사에 대한 거래 대금 accounted for only 3.1% of the company's revenue, but given 쿠팡's massive sales volume, these transactions still surpassed the limit set for other e-commerce and platform firms.

Special relationship transactions involve inter-company dealings between parent and subsidiary companies, which may involve internal transfers or excessive fee structures that can be used for profit shifting, tax avoidance, and other questionable practices. The 쿠팡의 매출 상위 1000개사 조사 결과 보고서 showed that nearly half of the special relationship funds flowed out of 쿠팡's US subsidiary, with significant transfers also made to subsidiaries in Shanghai, Beijing, and India.

The structure of spending these funds on overseas subsidiaries puts downward pressure on domestic profit margins and reduces Korean corporate income tax payments. Industry observers noted that while this may not be a concern for pure manufacturing companies focused on importing finished goods, a platform business spending over 1 trillion won on overseas subsidiaries raises questions about its continued investment and tax contributions in the domestic ecosystem.

Unlike 쿠팡, some foreign-owned companies, such as Korean McDonald's, have no special relationship transactions at all, as they source raw and intermediate materials domestically and handle production entirely within their domestic facilities.