New Coupang CEO’s baffling responses at data leak hearing spark anger

Harold Rodgers, the interim CEO of Coupang’s Korean enterprise, speaks at a Nationwide Meeting listening to on the e-commerce large’s large leak of buyer knowledge on Dec. 17, 2025. (Kim Gyoung-ho/Hankyoreh)

“The place is Bom Kim proper now?” — Rep. Hwang Jung-a, of the Democratic Social gathering

“I’m sorry that I don’t communicate Korean.” — Harold Rogers, Coupang’s new interim CEO

Rogers was showing earlier than the Nationwide Meeting’s Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee a few large leak of private data at Coupang, the Korean e-commerce large.

Within the absence of Coupang founder Kim Bom-suk, who goes by Bom Kim in America and serves because the chairman of the retailer’s US-based mother or father firm Coupang Inc., the corporate was represented by the newly put in interim CEO, Harold Rogers. When Rogers was requested about Kim’s whereabouts, he apologized for not having the ability to communicate Korean and checked whether or not his solutions have been being interpreted correctly.

After repeated failures to instantly reply questions regardless of the interpreter sitting subsequent to him, Hwang stated, “I feel that is all a deliberate ploy to reply evasively. I feel you’ve made up your thoughts to feed us a bunch of non sequiturs.”

The state of affairs performed out equally when opposition lawmakers had an opportunity to reply questions.

When Rep. Lee Jun-seok of the minor Reform Social gathering requested Rogers to briefly handle why Kim hadn’t proven up for the listening to, Rogers made the next response in English: “Thanks for the query, and I respect the chance to be right here immediately and reply questions and to answer this committee and to the Nationwide Meeting. I’m deeply sorry for the priority that we’ve created for the Korean individuals. As you’re conscious, I’m now the CEO of Coupang Korea, and so I’m right here to reply any and all questions.”

Rogers was evidently making an attempt to expire the clock together with his professional forma response.

Lee was nonplused by what he described as a “meaningless nonanswer,” whereas Rep. Choi Min-hee, the Democrat who chairs the committee, requested the Coupang CEO to “please skip the pleasantries.”

It was an unsurprising efficiency.

On the outset of the listening to, Rogers stated, by means of an interpreter, that he doesn’t communicate any Korean except for a number of easy greetings.

Attending the identical listening to was Brett Matthes, Coupang’s chief data safety officer. Matthes stated by means of an interpreter that he is aware of a smattering of Korean phrases (reminiscent of “mother-in-law,” “brother-in-law,” “spouse,” and “hiya”) however not sufficient to grasp what the lawmakers have been discussing.

“Kim [Bom-suk] is making a mockery of the Korean individuals when he claims he can’t present up [for hearings at the National Assembly] as a result of he’s a world CEO. It’s a cowardly try to move the buck by trotting out these foreigners who don’t communicate the native language,” remarked Rep. Choi Hyung-du of the Individuals Energy Social gathering.

Following the morning listening to, Rep. Noh Jong-myung of the Democratic Social gathering posted a display screen seize on Fb exhibiting he had deleted his Coupang account together with the caption: “We noticed proper by means of their ploy to permit Kim Bom-suk, the proprietor of Coupang, to cover whereas swiftly swapping out its CEO with a foreigner. The listening to acquired nowhere.”

Park Chang-jin, a senior spokesperson for the Democratic Social gathering, gave a briefing later that day. 

“At this time’s listening to, which consisted of issues like ‘I can say hiya in Korean,’ and ‘I can’t perceive what the lawmakers are asking,’ was calculated farce supposed on hiding behind the necessity for interpretation to purchase time and dance round the true problem,” the spokesperson stated. 

“This did nothing to alleviate the anger felt by Koreans — removed from it. Certainly, it has solely added to mistrust and anger,” Park stated. 

By Tune Gyung-hwa, employees reporter

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