Koo Young-bae, CEO of Qoo10. (Photo courtesy of Qoo10)

 

[Alpha Biz= Reporter Kim Jisun] Koo Young-bae, CEO of Qoo10 Group, admitted on the 30th that part of the sales proceeds from TMON and Wemakeprice were temporarily used as funds for the acquisition of the American e-commerce platform, Wish. He acknowledged that Qoo10 Group had diverted funds that were meant for small business owners and SMEs to acquire Wish for 230 billion KRW.

At the emergency inquiry session held by the National Assembly's Political Affairs Committee, Representative Min Byung-deok of the Democratic Party of Korea asked if 40 billion KRW of the Wish acquisition funds came from the sales proceeds of TMON and Wemakeprice. Koo responded, "I understand that it is included."

Koo stated, "Although we acquired Wish for 230 billion KRW, the actual amount used was 40 billion KRW." He explained, "We received 40 billion KRW and repaid it immediately." He further mentioned, "We gathered all available funds within the group to pay for the Wish acquisition."

However, Koo clarified, "The money temporarily used from TMON and Wemakeprice for the Wish acquisition was repaid within a month, and it did not delay the settlement payments to sellers."

The 1st Anti-Corruption Investigation Division of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office is considering applying charges of breach of trust and embezzlement if Koo used the sales proceeds from TMON and Wemakeprice for other purposes. Koo asserted, "For the past 15 years, I have risked everything to grow this business, and I have not embezzled a single penny for my personal gain."

 

 

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