Temu’s Southeast Asian foray runs into hurdle in Vietnam after Indonesia ban

The Chinese bargain shopping site is accused of operating in Vietnam without government approval, according to local reports

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Temu is an e-commerce platform owned by PDD Holdings. Photo: Reuters

Published: 7:00pm, 31 Oct 2024

Temu, the cross-border shopping platform owned by Chinese e-commerce giant PDD Holdings, faces heightened government scrutiny in Vietnam, posing new challenges for the company’s expansion plans in Southeast Asia.

The budget-shopping platform, which is legally domiciled in Boston, is applying for formal approval to operate in Vietnam, after its recent launch in the country raised regulatory compliance questions, according to local media outlet Vietnam Net.

Temu debuted in Vietnam early in October, wooing shoppers with perks that included up to 90 per cent discounts and referral bonuses. Soon after, Vietnam’s industry and trade ministry warned consumers against buying on unregistered platforms, citing concerns over the quality of cheap products being offered, local news outlet Lao Dong reported.

Vietnam has a legal basis to punish unregistered online shopping platforms, and it has fined those that failed to abide by regulations, Nguyen Van Thanh, director of the ministry’s Centre for E-commerce Development, was quoted as saying.

Vietnam is one of the fastest-growing e-commerce markets in Southeast Asia. (Photo: AFP

PDD did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday. Temu competes with Shopee, Tiki, TikTok Shop and Lazada in Vietnam. Lazada is backed by Alibaba Group Holding, owner of the South China Morning Post.