Meta has appointed Kunal Shah, an Indian tech entrepreneur, to head WhatsApp as the American giant seeks to monetize its messaging app's vast user base.

This announcement, which came on Monday evening, was accompanied by the news that Meta will also raise $900 million for CRED, an Indian financial services company for individuals founded by Mr. Shah.

"Kunal has built CRED into one of India's most important technology companies, and he possesses a builder's spirit and a global vision (...) invaluable for leading the world's largest messaging app," Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg said in a statement.

"I look forward to working with Kunal to continue making WhatsApp the best service for billions of people and millions of businesses."

India is WhatsApp's largest market with half a billion users, according to government figures from 2021.

Kunal Shah is part of a long line of Indian nationals at the helm of American tech giants.

Mr. Shah created CRED in 2018 after selling a previous payments start-up to Indian e-commerce giant Snapdeal for around 400 million.

It is also one of the biggest investors in the most populous country on the planet, notes Tracxn, a tech company analysis platform.

According to the Indian financial press, Mr. Shah would give his approval for the financing of projects just minutes after their presentation.

In recent years, Mr. Shah has focused on developing CRED, which began by offering rewards to customers who paid their credit card bills on time.

The company has since experienced strong growth by diversifying into wealth management, insurance and credit services for its 17 million users.

His experience should allow WhatsApp to diversify its revenue streams, beyond the central advertising model of Meta, which also owns Facebook and Instagram.

Analysts believe the messaging app missed an opportunity by not developing an equally popular payment service.

In a statement, Mr. Shah stressed that WhatsApp's growth prospects are immense.