China’s largest online travel platform, Ctrip, was fined 3.521 billion RMB (about 2.12 billion MYR) and had its illegal gains confiscated for abusing its market dominance to engage in monopolistic practices.
Ctrip was investigated by Chinese regulatory authorities earlier this year on suspicion of a monopoly in the market.
On the 25th, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) announced administrative penalties against Ctrip Group Co., Ltd. for abusing its dominant market position and engaging in monopolistic conduct, based on relevant provisions of the Anti-Monopoly Law of the People’s Republic of China. The penalties included confiscation of illegal gains amounting to 1.658 billion RMB and a fine of 3.521 billion RMB. At the same time, Ctrip was ordered to fully refund 122 million RMB of order reserve funds forcibly withheld from hotel operators, and required to undergo comprehensive rectification and publicly disclose remedial measures.
Ctrip stated that it “sincerely accepts and firmly obeys” the decision.
Ctrip was found to have engaged in two types of monopolistic behavior. First, it required certain hotels to enter into exclusive cooperation agreements, constituting a restricted transaction prohibited by the Anti-Monopoly Law; second, it forced certain hotels to provide 'the lowest price on the Internet,' constituting an unreasonable additional trading condition prohibited by the Anti-Monopoly Law.
For the full year 2025, Ctrip Group's net operating income was 62.4 billion RMB, up 17% year-on-year; net profit was 33.4 billion RMB, a surge of 95%.
According to the Global Times, Ctrip held over half the market share in China, accounting for 56% of transaction volume in China’s hotel and travel market in 2024. Globally, Ctrip, Booking.com, and Expedia are ranked as the three leading travel platforms.