The messaging platform, WhatsApp, has announced plans to urgently apply for a stay of execution and appeal the ruling of the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal (CCPT) that upheld a $220 million penalty imposed by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC).

WhatsApp disclosed this in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday in Lagos, expressing strong disagreement with the tribunal’s decision.

In addition to the penalty, the tribunal ordered WhatsApp and its parent company, Meta Platforms Incorporated, to pay an extra $35,000 to the FCCPC, intended to cover the commission’s investigative costs into the companies’ data policies.

The tribunal also dismissed the appeal filed by WhatsApp and Meta challenging the FCCPC’s penalty, thereby reinforcing the regulator’s stance on protecting Nigerian users’ data rights.

Reacting to the judgment, WhatsApp stated that it would “urgently apply to stay the order and appeal today’s decision to avoid any impact to users.”

The company further emphasised its disagreement with the tribunal’s order, noting that the FCCPC’s decision contained “multiple inaccuracies” and “misrepresented how WhatsApp works.” 

The messaging giant warned that the tribunal’s decision could have broader implications for its ability to operate in Nigeria and elsewhere, stressing that:

“It will be impossible to provide WhatsApp in Nigeria, or globally, without the infrastructure of our parent company, Meta.”