Coupang’s U.S. investors filed a notice of intent to pursue an investor-state dispute settlement(ISDS) claim against the South Korean government.

The Justice Ministry said Thursday that Greenoaks and Altimeter had submitted the notice to Seoul under the South Korea–U.S. Free Trade Agreement, claiming to have suffered losses due to a South Korean government investigation into a personal data breach at the e-commerce company.

According to the ministry, investors argued that, following the Coupang data breach, South Korea’s National Assembly and executive branch launched sweeping investigations and administrative actions targeting the company.

They claimed that such actions violated multiple obligations under the agreement, including that of fair and equitable treatment, and that the measures had resulted in losses amounting to billions of dollars.

The notice of intent is a written statement expressing a claimant’s intention to seek arbitration and does not constitute a formal filing, with arbitration proceedings able to commence 90 days after the submission.

The ministry said it would establish a joint response system, centered on its international investment disputes task force, to closely review the legal issues related to the notice of intent and disclose relevant information to the public.