E-Commerce Giant That Exited Indonesia Suddenly Faces €2.5 Billion EU Regulatory Hurdle
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com once operated in Indonesia, but ultimately decided to pull out and close all its domestic operations in March 2023.
Nevertheless, JD.com remains solid in its home market. It has even continued expanding its business into Europe, launching its Joybuy e-commerce service in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg in March 2026.
JD.com also plans to acquire Ceconomy, the German electronics retail giant. However, that plan has triggered a stern warning from the European Union’s regulator.
According to a Reuters report, the acquisition is worth US$2.5 billion, equivalent to Rp 44 trillion. The European Commission has issued a formal notification expressing regulatory concerns over the transaction.
This step could force JD.com to make significant concessions in order to secure approval for the acquisition. The European Commission previously opened a full investigation into the deal in May 2026 under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation, which targets foreign state aid deemed unfair.
As part of its investigation, the European Commission is examining whether JD.com received preferential financing, tax incentives and grants from the Chinese government. Such support is suspected of helping JD.com offer a higher price to acquire Ceconomy.
JD.com can now propose remedies to address the European Union’s concerns. The company described the European Commission’s statement as a normal procedural step.
“We remain confident that this transaction supports Europe’s broader goals of innovation and competitiveness. We continue to expect the process to conclude positively in the second half of 2026,” JD.com said ahead of the European Commission’s announcement, quoted by Reuters on Friday (24 July 2026).
The European Commission has set 2 October 2026 as the deadline for deciding whether to approve the acquisition.
If successful, the acquisition would help one of China’s largest retailers expand beyond its domestic market through Ceconomy’s electronics retail network, which includes MediaMarkt and Saturn.
Closure in Indonesia
JD.com previously also operated an e-commerce network in Indonesia through JD.ID. However, the company announced that JD.id’s services would cease as of 31 March 2023. The decision was taken because JD.com would focus on building a cross-border supply chain network, with logistics and warehousing as its core business.
“This is a strategic decision by JD.com to grow in the international market with a focus on building a cross-border supply chain network, with logistics and warehousing at its core,” said Setya Yudha Indraswara, then Head of Corporate Communications & Public Affairs at JD.ID.
Before closing its service, JD.id had carried out two rounds of layoffs during the previous year — first in May and again in December 2022.
CNBC Indonesia’s records show that it was only in December 2022 that the company disclosed the number of employees affected by the policy, stating that around 200 people, or 30% of its staff, were impacted.