Seoul: Collusion-related corporate fines imposed by South Korea's antitrust regulator more than tripled in the first quarter compared with the total for all of 2025, industry data showed Wednesday. The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) levied 689.1 billion won (US$456 million) in fines on companies involved in collusion during the January-March period, according to the data compiled by corporate tracker CEO Score. The quarterly total is far higher than the 218.9 billion won recorded for all of last year, the data showed.

According to Yonhap News Agency, collusion-related penalties accounted for 97.5 percent of the country's total corporate fines of 707 billion won in the first quarter. The overall corporate fines of 707 billion won represented a twofold increase from the 354.7 billion won recorded for all of 2025. Annual fines are expected to increase further as recently revised, stricter standards on unfair market practices under the new administration of President Lee Jae Myung take effect.

In February, the FTC imposed a combined 408.3 billion won in fines on CJ CheilJedang Corp. and two other domestic sugar manufacturers over collusion in business-to-business (B2B) sugar pricing over a four-year period through April 2025. The regulator also fined the country's four major lenders, including KB Kookmin Bank and Hana Bank, a total of 272 billion won for collusion involving information sharing.