The European Union has handed Chinese-owned online retailer Temu a €200 million ($232 million) fine on Thursday for noncompliance of the bloc's Digital Services Act (DSA), a rule that compels the world's most popular digital platforms to conduct risk assessments of potential dangers to consumers.
It is the second such fine imposed under the EU's DSA on content, after Elon Musk's X platform received a €120-million fine in December.
EU regulators said that consumers on Temu are "very likely to encounter illegal items" and that the retailer "seriously underestimated how often EU consumers are likely to" see such products.
"The company failed to diligently identify, analyze, and assess the systemic risks of illegal products being offered on its platform and the resulting harm to consumers in the European Union," the EU said, adding that Temu failed to properly assess the platform's design and how it "could amplify dissemination risks of illegal products."
Temu responded to the announcement by saying the fine was "disproportionate." Temu added that it was "carefully reviewing the decision and assessing all options available to us," insisting it worked "constructively" with regulators.
