EU fines AliExpress €550 million under Digital Services Act
The European Commission imposed a record €550 million (about $629 million) fine on the Chinese e‑commerce platform AliExpress for breaching the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA). Regulators concluded that AliExpress failed to assess and mitigate the risks of illegal, unsafe or counterfeit products, allowing items such as fake clothing, hazardous toys and dangerous cosmetics to remain on its site for weeks and even be promoted by recommendation algorithms. The Commission highlighted insufficient staffing for product checks, an ineffective brand‑authorisation system and lax enforcement of penalties against non‑compliant sellers. AliExpress, owned by Alibaba, serves roughly 193 million consumers in the EU—more than rival platforms Shein and Temu. The company says the sanction is disproportionate and will consider an appeal. Under the DSA, it must submit a remedial action plan by 20 October (2026) or face additional penalties. This is the largest fine ever issued under the DSA, surpassing earlier penalties of €200 million on Temu and €120 million on X.