Quick Info

ProfessionEntrepreneur
NationalityIndian
Date of Birth30/05/1979
Age47 years
BirthplaceMumbai

Latest News about Kunal Shah

01/06/2026

Kunal Shah, the founder of CRED, was appointed as the new global head of WhatsApp in June 2026, succeeding Will Cathcart who led the platform for nearly seven years. Meta announced the appointment, marking a significant career milestone for Shah as he transitions from leading India's fintech unicorn to managing one of the world's largest messaging platforms.

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Bio/Wiki

Kunal Shah is an Indian entrepreneur and angel investor.
He is the founder of CRED and previously co-founded FreeCharge.
He is the founder and CEO of CRED, a members-only credit card bill payment rewards platform.
He previously co-founded FreeCharge and served as its CEO.
In June 2026, he was appointed as the new global head of WhatsApp, succeeding Will Cathcart.

Physical Stats & More

Eye ColorDark Brown
Hair ColorBlack

Educational Qualification(s)

College/University
  • Wilson College, Mumbai
  • Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai
Educational QualificationBA in Philosophy, MBA Dropout

Relationships & More

Marital StatusMarried

Family

SpouseBhavna Shah (Freelance Graphic Designer)

Career

Awards, Honours, Achievements
  • Comeback award - Economic Times - 2016
  • Economic Times 40 under 40
  • Times of India 2016
  • Fortune 40 under 40 - 2016
  • Fortune Magazine 2015

Favourites

FoodGuacamole and chips
PhilosopherSocrates
PlaywrightG. B. Shaw
BusinessmanSteve Jobs
Books
  • Hard things about Hard things by Ben Horowitz
  • Zero to One by Blake Masters and Peter Thiel
  • Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely
  • The Monk who sold his Ferrari by Robin Sharma
  • Never split the difference by Christopher Voss and Tahl Raz
Travel DestinationGoa

Some Lesser Known Facts

1. Kunal Shah founded CRED, the second-fastest-growing unicorn startup in India.
2. He began working during his teenage years to support his family financially.
3. Kunal served as the CEO of FreeCharge, a company he established in 2010.
4. He has made investments in startups such as Pianta, Unacademy, and Razorpay.
5. In 2018, he launched CRED, focusing on the top 1% of Indians with significant disposable income.
6. Kunal introduced a reward system at CRED offering incentives for credit card bill payments, including discounts on flights and gym memberships.
7. His first startup venture was PaisaBack in 2009, which provided cash-back promotions for organised retailers.
8. He started his career as a junior programmer at a business process outsourcing startup and also worked as a data entry operator and delivery boy.
9. CRED has over 5 million users and processes about 20% of all credit card payments in India.
10. Kunal Shah's net worth is estimated at $900 million.
Information on this page is collected from public sources and may not be 100% accurate. Report an error
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