
Germany’s Cartel Office Investigating Temu Over Merchant Price Controls

GeokHub
Contributing Writer
Germany’s antitrust authority has opened an investigation into Temu, operated by Whaleco Technology Ltd., over suspicions that the e-commerce platform may be improperly influencing how third-party merchants set their prices. The probe focuses on whether Temu imposes requirements on sellers that go beyond legal bounds — constraints that could hamper competition and raise prices elsewhere in the market.
Office president Andreas Mundt said that such price-influencing practices, if proven, constitute a significant restriction of competition, and could lead to higher consumer prices on other platforms. Temu has been active in Germany for about a year. It currently serves some 19.3 million users in Germany, with over 100 million users across its European marketplace each month.
In response, Temu said it operates in compliance with laws and regulations in the markets where it works, and expressed confidence that it can address any raised concerns.