Meta names Cred founder Kunal Shah to lead WhatsApp
Will Cathcart is leaving the top WhatsApp job after seven years, while Meta is investing in Shah’s fintech startup, Bloomberg reported.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
2 min read
Meta is changing leaders at WhatsApp, putting Cred founder Kunal Shah in charge of one of its most important consumer apps. The move matters because it ties the messaging service’s next chapter to a major investment in Shah’s Indian fintech company, according to Bloomberg.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Monday on Facebook that Shah will become the head of WhatsApp. Will Cathcart, who has run the messaging app for the past seven years, also said on Threads that he is stepping down from the role.
Zuckerberg said Cathcart will remain at Meta in a different position. He did not specify the new job in the announcement cited by The Verge.
Cred founder takes over
Shah founded Cred, an Indian startup whose app lets users manage bills and earn rewards for payments made through its platform. Bloomberg reported that Meta is investing $900 million in Cred as part of the leadership change, giving Meta a 20 percent stake in the company.
Shah will leave his job as Cred’s chief executive to run WhatsApp, according to Zuckerberg. In his Facebook post, Zuckerberg said Shah built Cred into “one of India’s most important technology companies” and said Shah brings a “builder mentality and global perspective” to the WhatsApp role.
The appointment brings an executive from India’s startup sector to the top of a global messaging product with a large international user base. Zuckerberg described WhatsApp in the same post as the world’s biggest messaging app.
Cathcart’s tenure
Cathcart became head of WhatsApp in 2019, according to The Verge. His time leading the app included several product changes across privacy, devices, advertising and artificial intelligence.
In 2021, WhatsApp introduced encrypted chat backups while Cathcart was in charge, The Verge reported. More recently, the app expanded to the iPad, added ads and introduced private chats with Meta’s AI chatbot, according to The Verge.
The leadership change comes as Meta continues to build WhatsApp beyond its core messaging features. The company has added more services around the app while continuing to emphasize encrypted communication in some parts of the product.
Meta has not announced additional details about Cathcart’s next position or Shah’s start date beyond Zuckerberg’s Monday statement, according to the available announcements and reports.
This story draws on original reporting from The Verge.