AliExpress will appeal the fine after European Union (EU) regulators found shortcomings in its efforts to curb illegal, unsafe and counterfeit goods.
AliExpress, the biggest Chinese e-commerce platform, has been fined €550 million ($629 million) in the European Union for failing to tackle the sale of illegal, unsafe and counterfeit products.
“The proliferation of counterfeit clothing, unsafe toys, dangerous cosmetics and other illegal and harmful products is not an inevitable cost of online shopping – it is AliExpress’s failure to comply with its obligations under the Digital Services Act,” European Commission Vice President Hanna Virkkunen said on Monday.
It is the largest fine ever imposed under the Digital Services Act (DSA), which sets out clear rules for online services in the EU, particularly targeting very large online platforms.
AliExpress said it would appeal the “disproportionate” fine, saying it considered the fine excessive.
AliExpress faces October 20 deadline
The online retail giant, which belongs to Alibaba Group, must pay a fine and has until October 20 to submit a plan to address the violations. After this, EU regulators will review the plan, after which the company may face further penalties.
A year ago, AliExpress agreed to tighten controls on illegal and potentially dangerous goods such as drugs and supplements. But the European Commission said the measures did not fully address its broader concerns.
The Commission said AliExpress:
- In some cases it failed to punish merchants selling illegal products, allowing them to continue operating on the platform.
- Lacks sufficient staff to effectively review potentially illegal listings.
- Inspectors faced excessive workload, hampering inspection efforts.
- Some illegal products were recommended or promoted before being removed from the platform.
But AliExpress said the EU decision “ignores our strong risk management framework and the important, proactive enhancements we have made.”
The company also said it had worked with the Commission to meet its “increasing expectations”.
DSA used to rein in Big Tech
According to the EU, AliExpress has 193 million users in the block, ahead of online fashion giant Shein and retailer Teemu, which have 156 million and 130 million users respectively.
“One in five Europeans say they shop from Shein, Teemu and AliExpress once a month,” Virkkunen said.
Teemu was found guilty of €200 million in May, while Elon Musk’s social media platform X was found to have breached the DSA in December last year.
Edited by: Jennifer Cimino Gonzalez
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