Betrayal of 33.67 Million: Why Coupang's Q4 2025 Earnings Release Is Under the Spotlight Amid the Data Breach Fallout
Coupang Inc. is set to release its Q4 2025 earnings in the early hours of February 27 (Korea time). While the company is expected to surpass ₩50 trillion in annual revenue for the first time, the 'de-Coupang' movement following the 33.67 million-record data breach and surging competitor MAUs have emerged as the biggest wildcards.
📌 Why This Matters Now: Coupang, Korea's No. 1 e-commerce company, is releasing its Q4 earnings today (local time, February 26). The market is watching closely to see how much the anticipated milestone of breaking ₩50 trillion in annual revenue is offset by the company's worst-ever crisis — a data breach affecting 33.67 million records.
TL;DR
- Coupang Inc. is scheduled to release its Q4 2025 and full-year results in the early hours of February 27 (Korea time)
- Possibility of first-ever ₩50 trillion annual revenue — cumulative revenue through Q3 already reached ₩36 trillion
- 'De-Coupang' trend observed following the late-2025 data breach of 33.67 million records
- Competitor G-Market MAU +25.4%, SSG.com +17.9% — benefiting from the fallout
- A compounded crisis involving a US-Korea trade risk, including a US House Judiciary Committee subpoena
📋 The Facts: What Happened
Earnings Release Overview
Coupang's US parent company Coupang Inc. is set to announce its Q4 2025 and full-year results — followed by a conference call — in the early hours of February 27, 2026 (Korea time).
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY Growth | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Q1 | ~₩11.5 trillion | ~18% | Estimated |
| 2025 Q2 | ~₩12 trillion | ~18% | Estimated |
| 2025 Q3 | ₩12.8455 trillion | +20% | Record quarterly high |
| 2025 Full Year | ₩50 trillion+ forecast | — | vs. ₩41 trillion in 2024 |
With cumulative revenue through Q3 reaching ₩36 trillion, adding just ~₩14 trillion in Q4 would make ₩50 trillion a reality for the first time.
The Data Breach: Full Story
In late 2025, a former Coupang employee was found to have illegally accessed and leaked 33,673,817 customer records, as revealed by a government joint public-private investigation. The leaked data included names, emails, phone numbers, delivery addresses, and shared entrance codes (de-identified). An estimated ~148 million delivery address page views were accessed.
- An additional 200,000 Taiwan accounts were also confirmed
- US House Judiciary Committee subpoenaed Coupang Korea's acting representative (February 23, 2026)
- National Tax Service reportedly launched an investigation related to audit report disclosures
🔥 Why It Blew Up: The Amplification Mechanism
1. Surge in 'De-Coupang' Search Volume
Searches for 'Coupang withdrawal' and 'de-Coupang' spiked immediately after the breach was announced. According to WiseApp·Retail data, competitor MAUs rebounded across the board as of January 2026.
- G-Market MAU: +25.4% (year-on-year)
- SSG.com MAU: +17.9%
- 11Street MAU: +4.1%
This is the first data signal showing that customers Coupang had steadily captured are beginning to defect.
2. The Structural Dilemma of Operating Margins
Even after turning a profit for the first time in 2023, Coupang's operating margins have remained thin.
| Year | Operating Margin |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 1.94% |
| 2024 | 1.46% |
| 2025 (Forecast) | — |
Critics note that expanding investment into overseas growth markets such as Taiwan is slowing the profitability recovery. If the earnings release fails to signal margin improvement, investor confidence could be at risk.
3. US-Korea Trade Pressure
Coupang is incorporated in Delaware and listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The US House subpoena is notable because it could escalate beyond a domestic issue into a US-Korea trade and governance matter.
🧭 Context & Background: What Is Coupang?
Coupang is an e-commerce company founded in 2010 by Bom Kim. It raised approximately ₩5 trillion ($4.5 billion) when it listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2021. It pioneered dawn and same-day delivery culture in Korea through its 'Rocket Delivery' service.
- Nationwide logistics centers: 70% of Korea's population lives within 10 minutes of a Coupang warehouse
- Vertically integrated across private-label (PB) products, Coupang Play (OTT), and Coupang Eats (food delivery)
- Named to Fortune 200 (2023·2024) and Fortune 150 (2025)
🔭 Outlook: What Comes Next
Short Term (1–4 Weeks)
- Stock price reaction after earnings will be the first indicator. Even with strong results, the stock could fall if one-time costs and sanction risks related to the data breach are priced in
- Government fines and administrative penalties could be decided as early as March
Medium Term (1–3 Months)
- Whether the 'de-Coupang' exodus is temporary outrage or structural churn will be confirmed by Q1 2026 MAU data (released in May)
- US Congressional follow-up actions could draw this issue into the US-Korea trade agenda
Long Term (6 Months+)
- The structural dilemma of overseas expansion (Taiwan, Japan, etc.) consuming cash faster than profitability recovers may persist
- Security investment and trust-rebuilding costs could emerge as a new fixed cost line item
✅ Checklist: What to Watch in This Earnings Release
Risk Disclaimer
References
- Coupang Data Breach — Donga Ilbo
- Coupang Earnings Imminent — Daum News
- Coupang Ahead of US Hearing & Earnings — MyDailyByte
- Coupang — Wikipedia