Nigeria Strikes Back: Tribunal Confirms Massive Fine Against Meta, WhatsApp

Nigeria’s Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal has imposed a $220 million administrative penalty on Meta Platforms Inc. and its subsidiary WhatsApp LLC, citing violations of consumer protection and data privacy laws. The Tribunal also awarded $35,000 in investigative costs to the country’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC). In a statement issued by the FCCPC, the Tribunal delivered its judgment in the appeal filed by Meta Platforms Incorporated (Facebook) and WhatsApp LLC against the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), affirming the Commission’s authority and ruling in favour of its actions on nearly all contested issues. According to the statement by the FCCPC, “The Tribunal specifically determined that the Commission adhered to prevailing laws, fulfilled its mandate, and exercised its powers by the 1999 Constitution (as amended). “It ruled that the multiple actions by WhatsApp and Meta, for which the Commission made findings of violations, were correctly identified, and that the Commission did not err in making those findings.” The statement revealed that WhatsApp and Meta’s legal team was led by Professor Gbolahan Elias (SAN), while the FCCPC was represented by Babatunde Irukera. It added that both legal teams presented their final arguments on behalf of their respective
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