By Darlington Onedibe
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has announced that Will Cathcart is stepping down as the head of WhatsApp after seven years leading the world’s largest messaging platform.
​Under Cathcart’s tenure, the instant messaging app underwent massive global scaling, recently surpassing more than three billion users worldwide. Zuckerberg praised Cathcart’s leadership, calling him “one of Meta’s most important and effective leaders” and highlighting his fierce advocacy for user privacy and end-to-end encryption.
​Cathcart will not be leaving the parent company entirely. He is transitioning into a new internal role at Meta, where he will focus on building new consumer products and tools from the ground up, utilizing artificial intelligence.
​In a statement shared on social media, Cathcart noted that WhatsApp is currently in its “strongest position ever,” making it the right moment to step back.
​”I’m so proud of what we have built,” Cathcart stated. “We scaled end-to-end encrypted messaging to more than three billion people… and defended people’s right to a private conversation across the globe.”
Meta has named Kunal Shah, the tech entrepreneur and founder of Indian fintech firm CRED, as Cathcart’s successor. In tandem with the appointment, Meta announced a $900 million investment in CRED, securing a 20% stake in the company.
Shah will step down from his current executive duties at CRED to take over global operations at WhatsApp, where he will be tasked with driving monetisation, building out new business lines, and leading the platform’s ongoing AI integration.
