WhatsApp is getting a new leader from the Indian fintech world after Meta invested $900m (£679m) in his start-up, giving the tech giant a 20% stake in the company.
Kunal Shah, founder of the Bengaluru-based members-only credit card platform Cred, will take over the messaging app globally, replacing Will Cathcart, who has led WhatsApp for nearly seven years. Cathcart said in a social media post on Monday that the platform was “in the strongest position it’s ever been” and “that felt like the right moment to step back”.
“Kunal Shah, founder of Indian fintech Cred, will lead WhatsApp after Meta invests $900m in his company.”
The shake-up comes as Meta, under chief executive Mark Zuckerberg, looks to strengthen WhatsApp’s already booming presence in India, its biggest market. The app has about 853 million users in the country, according to World Population Review, and launched a payment service in 2020, though it faces stiff competition from local rivals such as PhonePe and Google Pay.
Zuckerberg said Shah had created “one of India’s most important technology companies” with Cred and “brings the kind of builder mentality and global perspective that will serve him well in running the world’s biggest messaging app”. The fintech platform claims 17 million monthly members and processes over 40% of India’s credit card bill payments.
Shah, who founded Cred in 2018, will continue as a shareholder in the company. “Meta comes in as a minority investor in CRED. No access to member data,” he said on X. “I am stepping away from the operating role and will continue as a shareholder.” Shah noted the “delta between WhatsApp today and its full potential is massive” and said he looked forward to working with Zuckerberg and Meta’s leadership on “the next step in WhatsApp’s journey”.
Cathcart, who scaled WhatsApp’s private chat functions to more than three billion users worldwide, will remain within Meta’s leadership ranks. He thanked Shah for “building one of India’s most important technology companies” and expressed excitement “to see what Kunal and our amazing team continue to build”.