According to CNBC, the CEO of South Korean online retail giant Coupang, Park Dae-jun, has resigned. This comes just three weeks after the company became aware of a massive data breach. The incident, which was revealed on November 18, affected nearly 34 million customers. In a translated statement, Park said he felt a “deep sense of responsibility” and was stepping down from all positions. The parent company has appointed Chief Administrative Officer and General Counsel Harold Rogers as the interim CEO. Rogers’s immediate plan is to focus on alleviating customer anxiety and stabilizing the organization.
Stakeholder Fallout
So, what does this mean for everyone involved? For the 34 million users, it’s a nightmare. We’re talking about nearly the entire population of South Korea’s customer base being exposed. That’s an insane scale. The “customer anxiety” Rogers needs to alleviate is, frankly, justified terror about where their personal data might end up. Identity theft, phishing scams—you name it. The trust is shattered, and rebuilding it is a marathon, not a sprint.
For the company itself, this is a massive operational and reputational hit. Look, Coupang is often called the “Amazon of South Korea,” and this breach is the kind of catastrophe that can define a brand for years. Appointing the General Counsel as interim CEO is a classic crisis-management move. It signals that legal, regulatory, and compliance issues are now the absolute top priority. But here’s the thing: can a lawyer effectively steer the ship back towards growth and innovation, or will the company just go into a defensive crouch?
Broader Context
This resignation is pretty significant, and not just for Coupang. In many corporate cultures, especially in tech, CEOs often try to ride out a crisis. They’ll issue apologies, maybe fire a CISO, but stay in the chair. Park Dae-jun falling on his sword three weeks in shows the pressure must have been immense—from regulators, the public, and probably the board. It sets a stark precedent. Basically, when you lose data for almost an entire country, the buck stops at the very top.
And what about the market? Coupang is a major publicly traded company. This kind of leadership vacuum and ongoing crisis creates huge uncertainty for investors. The interim CEO might stabilize the internal org, but can he stabilize the stock price? The next few earnings calls are going to be brutal. The focus will entirely be on breach costs, legal liabilities, and customer churn, not on sales or expansion. It’s a complete derailment of their business narrative.
