Trump Traded Coupang Stock 18 Times Since Taking Office, Raising Conflict-of-Interest Questions

President Donald Trump bought and sold shares of New York-listed Coupang Inc. 18 times through an outside asset manager between October 2025 and May 2026, according to disclosure records.

Trump held and traded Coupang Class A common stock through two investment accounts. The remaining stake is estimated at as much as $130,000. Trump’s side said the trades were carried out through independent asset management during his term and that he was not involved in running the portfolio.

An analysis of public financial disclosure forms recently released by the US Office of Government Ethics, including OGE Forms 278e and 278-T, showed Trump held or traded Coupang Class A common stock through “Investment Account #7” and “Investment Account #8” in his asset portfolio.

On Oct. 9, 2025, Trump bought Coupang stock in two transactions, one valued at $1,001 to $15,000 and another at $50,001 to $100,000. He made an additional purchase on Oct. 16, 2025, valued at $1,001 to $15,000.

He also sold Coupang shares valued at $15,001 to $50,000 on Oct. 16, 2025. Additional sales followed on Nov. 10, 2025, in transactions valued at $15,001 to $50,000 and $1,001 to $15,000, and on Nov. 17, 2025, in a transaction valued at $1,001 to $15,000.

In 2026, Trump sold Coupang stock valued at $1,001 to $15,000 and $50,001 to $100,000 on Jan. 12. He sold another $1,001 to $15,000 on Jan. 21. He then bought shares again on Feb. 12 in transactions valued at more than $100,000 and up to $250,000, and $1,001 to $15,000, followed by another purchase on Feb. 23 valued at $1,001 to $15,000.

The last recorded trades came in May 2026, when Trump sold shares valued at $15,001 to $50,000 on May 18 and $50,000 to $100,000 on May 22.

Using the top end of the disclosed ranges, Trump repeatedly traded a stake initially worth as much as $130,000 starting in October 2025. After purchases totaling as much as $280,000 in February 2026 and sales totaling as much as $150,000 in May 2026, shares worth as much as $130,000 remained.

Trump’s purchases and sales from mid-October to mid-November 2025 came before Coupang announced a data leak incident. He bought the stock again in mid-December 2025, when a “Coupang hearing” in South Korea was beginning to draw attention in the US.

From January 2026, claims began emerging in Washington that the South Korean government was treating Coupang unfairly. In February 2026, the US House Judiciary Committee took closed-door testimony related to Coupang.

The committee also released a report on July 1, 2026, saying the South Korean government was discriminating against US companies including Coupang.

Still, with the US administration and Congress stepping up pressure on South Korea over issues related to Coupang, the inclusion of Coupang shares in Trump’s asset portfolio could invite broader scrutiny over a potential conflict of interest.

Lee Mi-na, Hankyung.com reporter helper@hankyung.com