Meta names Indian fintech founder Konal Shah as new head of WhatsApp

Meta has appointed Konal Shah, the founder of Indian fintech company CRED, as the new global head of WhatsApp, succeeding former chief Will Cathcart. The move comes alongside a $900 million investment by Meta that gives the group a minority stake in CRED. Mark Zuckerberg said Shah "built CRED into one of the most important tech companies in India and brings priceless global vision to lead WhatsApp." India, with more than half a billion users, is WhatsApp’s largest market, and Meta hopes Shah’s expertise in payments and digital services will broaden the app’s offerings beyond messaging into commerce and enterprise solutions.

The appointment reflects Meta’s strategy to diversify WhatsApp’s revenue streams and deepen its foothold in the Indian fintech ecosystem.