CRED Founder Kunal Shah Appointed Global Head Of WhatsApp

Bureau,Odishabarta

New Delhi:In one of the biggest bets by a global technology company on Indian fintech, Meta Platforms has pumped $900 million (roughly Rs 8,550 crore) into CRED as part of the startup’s Series H round.

The deal comes bundled with a dramatic leadership shake-up: CRED founder Kunal Shah will step down as CEO and take over as the global head of WhatsApp, succeeding Will Cathcart, who led the messaging platform for seven years.

Meta will hold approximately 20% in CRED through a mix of primary and secondary share purchases, valuing the Bengaluru-based company at $4.5 billion (around Rs 43,239 crore) post-money.

Meta has clarified it will not gain access to CRED’s customer data.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg confirmed the transition, saying Shah “brings the kind of builder mentality and global perspective that will serve him well in running the world’s biggest messaging app.” Shah will be tasked with driving WhatsApp’s revenue through advertising and subscription products and accelerating the rollout of AI agents on the platform.

Miten Sampat, who has headed strategy and finance at CRED since 2020, steps in as interim CEO with immediate effect. The company’s board is working on a permanent leadership structure as CRED prepares for a public listing.

Founded in 2018, CRED now counts 1.7 crore monthly active members, processes over 40% of India’s credit card bill payments and has reached profitability, reporting annual revenue of around Rs 3,200 crore.

#agencied

# imageGoogle