The Irish-based arms of UPS and Temu’s European and U.S. operating entity, Whaleco Inc., are facing off over tens of millions of euros in unpaid delivery bills related to the Chinese-founded e-tailer’s small-package shipments.
Lawyers for United Parcel Service of Ireland told the High Court on Monday that Whaleco Technology owes their client 37 million euros ($44 million) in outstanding invoices for parcel transport services across Europe from Sept. 20, 2024, to Dec. 11, 2025. It was Whaleco Technology’s “persistently late” and non-existent payments, they added, that ultimately led to the termination of an interim agreement between the parties in September 2025.
Related Stories
Neither Temu nor UPS responded to requests for comment.
The case was admitted to the commercial list by Justice Mark Sanfey on the application of Paul Gardiner, barrister for United Parcel Service of Ireland, with consent from Declan McGrath, counsel for Whaleco Technology. McGrath said his client was open to mediation since this was a commercial dispute that was capable of being resolved.
In an affidavit seeking entry of the case to the commercial court, Séamus Smith, a senior collections manager for UPSC CSTC Ireland, an Irish-incorporated affiliate within the UPS group, claimed that Whaleco Technology’s later requests for a reinstatement of the interim agreement were an acknowledgment that the deal had ended and that the “significant discounts” on standard UPS rates no longer applied. As a result, Smith said, Whaleco Technology made a “deliberate choice” to continue using the UPS service.
When Whaleco Technology failed to make any further significant payments after October, UPS’s Irish entities canceled all its accounts in December, Smith added.
Meanwhile, Whaleco Technology has disputed the validity of the interim agreement’s termination notice. Lawyers for the company have also denied liability for post-termination arrears, alleging “significant service failure,” including invoice and administration problems on UPS of Ireland’s end. UPS of Ireland has pushed back at those claims.
Still, bigger problems could lie ahead: Temu, which is owned by Chinese e-commerce giant PDD Holdings, saw its Dublin offices raided by European Union regulators in December over concerns about potential Chinese state subsidies. The 27-member bloc is also planning to address its so-called de minimis “loophole”—which European retailers say gives platforms like Temu an unfair advantage—by introducing a flat 3-euro ($3.57) fee on small parcels valued under 150 euros ($178), beginning July 1, pending a permanent solution.
And last summer, the European Commission preliminarily found Temu in breach of the obligation under the Digital Services Act to properly assess the risks of illegal products being sold on its marketplace. Should the findings be confirmed, Temu could face fines of up to 6 percent of its total worldwide annual turnover. Whaleco Technology reported revenues of $1.7 billion in 2024, according to Irish financial filings, up from $758 million the previous year. Other documents show that Temu has more than 115 million customers in the EU, or more than one-quarter of the population.
