E-commerce giant Coupang wins dismissal of US shareholder lawsuit over IPO

Core Viewpoint - Coupang, often referred to as the Amazon of South Korea, successfully had a lawsuit dismissed that accused it of defrauding shareholders during and after its 2021 IPO, which was the largest by a foreign company in over six years [1][5]. Group 1: Lawsuit Dismissal - U.S. District Judge Vernon Broderick ruled that shareholders failed to demonstrate that Coupang and its executives intended to defraud them or made materially misleading statements [2]. - The judge noted that the claims regarding unsafe working conditions and other allegations were either too broad, insufficiently specific, or amounted to "puffery" [4]. Group 2: Shareholder Allegations - Shareholders accused Coupang of various misconducts, including concealing unsafe working conditions, manipulating search results, and coercing suppliers to raise prices on rival platforms [3]. - The lawsuit claimed that Coupang's share price dropped by more than 50% within a year of the IPO due to revelations about these issues [4]. Group 3: IPO Details - Coupang raised $4.6 billion in its IPO, marking the largest IPO by a foreign company on Wall Street since Alibaba's in September 2014 [7]. - The IPO was backed by Softbank Group and was significant in the context of foreign company listings in the U.S. market [7]. Group 4: Company Background - Coupang was founded in 2010 by billionaire Bom Kim and was headquartered in Seoul at the time of its IPO, although it has since moved its headquarters to Seattle [6].