Kunal Shah to Lead WhatsApp at Meta
CRED founder Kunal Shah announced on Monday that he will join Meta to lead WhatsApp globally, stepping away from his day-to-day operating role at the fintech platform he built over several years. Shah shared the development in a social media post, stating that CRED is ready for its next phase of growth and that Miten Sampat will take over as interim Chief Executive Officer.
Transition at CRED
In his post, Shah said: "CRED is ready for its next phase. I am stepping back and @miten steps in as interim CEO." He added that Miten Sampat has been leading strategy and finance at the company and has been associated with him since 2020. Shah emphasized that he will continue to remain associated with CRED as a shareholder. "I'm stepping away from the operating role and will continue as a shareholder. My commitment doesn't change. Just the role," he said.
CRED's Growth Journey
Reflecting on his entrepreneurial journey, Shah noted that after exiting FreeCharge between 2015 and 2018, he spent time learning, investing and exploring new ideas. Using USD 1 million of personal capital, he launched CRED with the aim of rewarding people for paying their credit card bills on time. According to Shah, between 2019 and 2025, CRED grew from zero to 17 million members by aligning incentives with customer behaviour. During this period, the company launched several products, including during the COVID-19 lockdowns, and raised more than USD 900 million from global investors.
Shah said the company also conducted four employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) buybacks, secured a full stack of regulatory licences and scaled its annual revenue to around USD 325 million, or approximately Rs 3,200 crore, across payments, lending, insurance, commerce, wealth and credit card businesses. He added that CRED recorded its first profitable quarter in 2026. He also disclosed that the company raised another USD 900 million from Meta in primary and secondary capital and is now announcing its fifth ESOP buyback.
Meta's Investment and Data Privacy
Shah clarified that Meta's investment in CRED would be as a minority investor and that there would be no access to member data. "Meta comes in as a minority investor in CRED. No access to member data," Shah said. On his new role, Shah stated: "As for me, I'll be joining Meta to lead WhatsApp globally." Commenting on WhatsApp's future opportunities, Shah said that while the platform has already achieved significant scale, there remains substantial untapped potential. "While it's come very far, the delta between WhatsApp today and its full potential is massive," he said.
