China’s Regulator Probes e-Commerce Platform Vipshop

China’s top market regulator has launched an investigation into e-commerce platform Vipshop Holdings over “alleged improper competition behaviour,” as Beijing continues to tighten antitrust regulation in the country’s tech sector, China Morning Post.

The State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR), which revealed new draft antitrust rules in November last year, announced the probe on Thursday, January 14, in a one-line statement on its website without providing further details.

However, the SAMR also posted a statement on its official WeChat account: “From internet giants with complex business categories to relatively small and vertical e-commerce platforms, the recent moves of the national regulatory authorities have sent a clear message: no matter whether it is a large or small business, they will be treated equally under market supervision rules.”

Vipshop, which counts Tencent Holdings and JD.com as investors and is based in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, is an online discount retailer founded in 2008 that offers branded products to consumers through flash sales.

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