Alibaba to Pay $600 Million Over Illegal Drug Sales on Its Platforms
The settlement signals increased U.S. enforcement against foreign e-commerce platforms for facilitating illegal pharmaceutical sales.
Reporting from 1 sources: GIGAZINE.
Alibaba Group and its U.S. payment subsidiary AUS Merchant Services have agreed to pay $600 million to resolve allegations that they failed to prevent illegal pharmaceutical sales on Alibaba.com and AliExpress.com. The Department of Justice said the companies admitted to lapses between 2016 and 2024, including allowing the sale of controlled substances and unapproved drugs. The settlement includes fines and forfeitures, and the companies agreed to strengthen compliance systems.
The Department of Justice said Alibaba acknowledged that between January 2016 and December 2024, it failed to prevent sellers from offering about 80,000 products that violated the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. The products, including pharmaceuticals, controlled substances, and tablet presses, were estimated to be worth $200 million. Alibaba agreed to pay a $125 million fine and forfeit $200 million, while AUS agreed to a $85 million fine and $190 million forfeiture. Both companies also accepted responsibility for their employees' actions and pledged to improve compliance and cooperate with future investigations.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.