Senior executives at Coupang, the South Korean e-commerce giant, sold millions of dollars in company shares during the period when a major data breach was being discovered and investigated, regulatory filings show.
According to Securities and Exchange Commission filings, Chief Financial Officer Gaurav Anand sold 75,350 shares on Nov. 10 for approximately $2.1 million.
Separately, former Vice President Pranam Kollar, who oversaw search and recommendation technology, sold 27,388 shares on Nov. 17 for about $772,000. Kollar had resigned three days prior to his sale.
The transactions occurred before Coupang’s public announcement of a breach affecting about 33.7 million customer accounts on Nov. 29, but after the company had begun investigating the incident.
The timing could draw scrutiny under U.S. insider trading rules, which prohibit trades based on material nonpublic information.
In his filing, Anand stated the sale was executed under a prearranged trading plan adopted in December 2023. Such plans, known as 10b5-1 plans, allow corporate insiders to schedule stock sales in advance to defend against allegations of trading on inside information.
Coupang informed regulators that it first detected unauthorized access affecting about 4,500 accounts on Nov. 18.
However, a report to Korean authorities indicated the intrusion began as early as Nov. 6, suggesting a 12-day gap before initial detection.
The company said the exposed data included customer names, email and physical addresses, phone numbers, and partial order details. Coupang declined to comment beyond its regulatory disclosures.
Legal experts note that while 10b5-1 plans provide a defense, they do not guarantee immunity if authorities suspect the plan was created or modified with knowledge of impending negative news.
