Temu, the Chinese e-commerce platform that has taken the West by storm with its ultra-cheap goods, is making a high-stakes bet: It wants to convince consumers and regulators that it’s serious about fighting counterfeit products.
Last week, the company signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition (IACC), a major industry group that includes brands like Apple, Nike, and Disney. The deal makes Temu an inaugural member of the IACC’s Marketplace Advisory Council (MAC), a coalition of e-commerce platforms, payment providers, and corporations working to combat the sale of fake goods online.
The move signals a strategic shift for Temu, which has faced growing scrutiny over the authenticity of products sold on its platform. Since its 2022 launch, the company — owned by Chinese conglomerate PDD Holdings — has rapidly expanded into 90+ markets, luring shoppers with $5 wireless earbuds, $10 sneakers, and $3 T-shirts. But its aggressive pricing and reliance on overseas manufacturers have also made it a target for accusations of counterfeit listings, IP violations, and lax seller vetting.
Why Temu Needs This Partnership
Counterfeit goods are a $500 billion global problem, and online marketplaces are a major battleground. For Temu, the risks are twofold:
- Regulatory Pressure — The U.S. Trade Representative has previously blacklisted Chinese platforms like Alibaba’s Taobao for counterfeit sales. Temu, now a top-downloaded shopping app in globally, wants to avoid similar scrutiny.
- Brand Distrust — If consumers associate Temu with knockoffs, its long-term growth could stall. A recent survey by Omnisend found that many U.S. shoppers, for example, doubted the authenticity of products on discount Chinese platforms.
By joining the IACC’s MAC — alongside Amazon, eBay, Visa, and Mastercard — Temu gains access to real-time counterfeit data, brand collaboration, and industry credibility.
“This is a necessary step for Temu to legitimize itself,” says a markets analyt with Launch Base Africa. “But the real test is whether they can enforce these policies at scale while keeping prices low.”
How Temu Plans to Fight Fakes
The company outlined several measures, including:
- AI-powered monitoring (scanning listings for counterfeit red flags)
- Stricter seller vetting (requiring business licenses and compliance checks)
- A dedicated IP portal (letting brands report fakes for faster takedowns)
Yet critics argue that Temu’s business model — direct shipments from Chinese factories — makes enforcement difficult. Unlike Amazon, which warehouses many products itself, Temu relies on millions of third-party sellers, some of whom may slip counterfeit goods into shipments.
Temu isn’t alone in this fight. Amazon, eBay, and Alibaba have spent years battling fakes, with mixed results. In 2023, Amazon reported seizing over 7 million counterfeit products, while the U.S. seized $2.8 billion in fake goods at borders — many linked to e-commerce.
The IACC’s MAC aims to standardize enforcement across platforms. “No single company can solve counterfeiting alone,” says Bob Barchiesi, IACC President. “This council is about shared intelligence and accountability.”
Will Consumers Trust Temu Now?
For shoppers like Adeola Anthony, a 28-year-old in Lagos, price still trumps brand authenticity. “I bought $15 ‘AirPods’ on Temu,” she says. “They broke in a week, but at that price, I didn’t expect real ones.”
Temu’s challenge is to keep prices low while proving its products are legit — a balancing act that could define its future.
The Bottom Line: Temu’s IACC partnership is a step toward legitimacy, but the real battle is execution. If counterfeit listings persist, regulators and shoppers may turn away — no matter how cheap the deals are.