Uber has suffered another blow in its aggressive expansion drive in Asia, after its chief executive was indicted in South Korea.
South Korean prosecutors on Wednesday formally charged Travis Kalanick and Uber’s car-rental partner MK Korea for violating a local transportation law that prohibits rental cars from operating as taxis. The punishment for breaking the law is up to two years in prison or a fine of up to Won20m ($18,000), according to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office.
Song Kyu-jong, the prosecutor in charge of the case, said Mr Kalanick and his local partner would have to stand trial in Korea but he declined to comment on whether he expected Mr Kalanick to appear for questioning.