Interesting facts about Kunal Shah who will lead WhatsApp after CRED
Kunal Shah, founder of fintech company CRED, has been named the new global head of WhatsApp following a major funding round in CRED led by Meta Platforms, according to reports.
According to reports, the decision comes from Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Following this development, Shah is set to take on leadership responsibilities at one of the world’s largest messaging platforms.
Shah’s rise has been marked by a series of entrepreneurial and personal challenges. After his father’s business suffered financial difficulties, he began working at a young age to support his family. By his mid-teens, he had taken up several jobs, including delivery work, data entry, tutoring, operating a cyber café, selling mehendi cones, and trading CDs.
He has often highlighted empathy as a key ingredient in building successful organisations. According to Shah, understanding the needs and emotions of both customers and employees is essential for creating lasting change and inspiring teams.
Unlike many founders from engineering or management backgrounds, Shah studied Philosophy at Wilson College in Mumbai. He later enrolled in an MBA programme at Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies but chose not to complete it.
Before launching CRED, Shah founded FreeCharge, an early digital payments platform that was eventually acquired by Axis Bank in 2017. In 2018, he established CRED with an initial personal investment of $1 million. Since then, the company has grown significantly and now serves millions of active users every month.
As he transitions to his new role at WhatsApp, Shah is expected to step down as CEO of CRED while retaining his ownership stake in the fintech company.