Meta has appointed Indian fintech founder Kunal Shah as the new head of WhatsApp, as the US tech giant looks for ways to monetize the messaging app’s massive user base.
The announcement, made Monday night, was accompanied by news that Meta would also lead a $900 million funding round in Shah’s consumer finance firm CRED.
“Kunal built CRED into one of the most important technology companies in India,” Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a statement.
“He brings the kind of builder mentality and global perspective that will serve him well in leading the world’s largest messaging app.”
Shah, a serial entrepreneur and influential figure in India’s fintech world, started CRED in 2018 after selling an earlier payments startup to Indian e-commerce giant Snapdeal for around $400 million.
He is also one of India’s most prolific angel investors, according to data tracker Tracxn, with the local financial press often reporting how Shah agrees to launch funding campaigns within minutes of hearing them.
But in recent years, Shah has focused on building CRED — which began by offering rewards to customers for on-time credit card payments.
Since then, the company has aggressively expanded to provide wealth management, insurance and lending services to its 17 million users.
That experience is likely to help WhatsApp as it seeks new revenue streams that go beyond Meta’s core advertising business, which also runs Facebook and Instagram.
While India is WhatsApp’s biggest market – with over half a billion users, according to 2021 government figures – analysts say it has largely missed the opportunity to build an equally popular payments service.
In May, the messaging app offered businesses in India the ability to use artificial intelligence for services, including answering customers around the clock or booking appointments.
Shah acknowledged room for future growth, saying in a statement that the gap between “WhatsApp today and its full potential is massive.”
India’s startup ecosystem also celebrated Shah’s appointment — the latest example of an Indian-origin executive becoming the leader of a Silicon Valley company.
Sajith Pai of Blume Ventures, a backer of early-stage Indian start-ups said Shah was getting an “even bigger canvas to paint his bold brushstrokes”.
“Great news for everyone in the Indian startup ecosystem and for India!”
