Kunal Shah named WhatsApp chief as Meta pours $900 million into CRED

Meta announced that Kunal Shah, the founder of Indian fintech startup CRED, will become the new global head of WhatsApp, succeeding Will Cathcart who will move to a different role within Meta. At the same time Meta disclosed a roughly $900 million investment in CRED, valuing the company at about $4.5 billion. The move places an Indian entrepreneur at the helm of a messaging platform used by more than three billion people worldwide, with India representing its largest market (over 500 million users). Shah, who previously built the payment‑recharge service FreeCharge and later grew CRED to 17 million monthly members, is noted for his philosophy background and extensive angel‑investor activity. Mark Zuckerberg remarked, “Kunal Shah will join Meta as WhatsApp’s next leader. Kunal built CRED into one of India’s most important technology companies, and he brings the kind of builder mentality and global perspective that will serve him well in running the world’s biggest messaging app.” The appointment signals Meta’s push to deepen WhatsApp’s commerce, payments and AI‑driven services, especially in its key Indian market.