Meta Names Arun Srinivas as New Managing Director for India

Photo: Reuters

Meta Platforms has announced the promotion of Arun Srinivas to Managing Director and Head for Meta in India, effective July 1, 2025. Srinivas, who has led Meta’s advertising operations in India since 2022, will now oversee the company’s overall business strategy, innovation and revenue efforts in the region.

In his new role, Srinivas will report to Sandhya Devanathan, Vice President and Managing Director for both India and Southeast Asia. Meta’s official statement emphasizes that he will enhance ties with advertisers, developers and business partners, contributing to long‑term growth and deeper ecosystem engagement in India.

Srinivas brings nearly three decades of leadership experience across industries. He holds a postgraduate degree from IIM Kolkata and started his career with roles at Reebok, Hindustan Unilever (rising to VP Foods South Asia), WestBridge Capital, and served as COO and CMO at Ola before joining Meta in 2020. Under his leadership in the ads business, Meta expanded partnerships focused on AI, Reels, and WhatsApp messaging—key growth areas in India.

His promotion arrives at a critical time. Meta continues to face regulatory scrutiny in India—most notably a fine from the Competition Commission of India (CCI) in November 2024 for data‑sharing violations involving WhatsApp. An Indian tribunal later suspended the five‑year data sharing ban, a decision that significantly impacted Meta’s operations in country. The leadership change signals Meta’s intent to strengthen its local leadership amid these ongoing policy challenges.

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Industry observers view Srinivas’s ascent as a strategic move to steer Meta through India’s complex tech and regulatory landscape. His experience with marketing, compliance, and business scaling aligns well with Meta’s objectives to reinforce growth, user features, and partnership dynamics in one of its most vital markets globally.

Commenting on the appointment, Sandhya Devanathan noted Srinivas’s stellar track record in building high-performing teams, driving product innovation, and fostering strong partnerships—qualities essential for steering Meta’s India agenda.

His transition coincides with a wider leadership review: Meta last month also saw the exit of its India public policy head, Shivnath Thukral, highlighting a period of executive realignment in response to evolving regulatory pressures.

Srinivas’s first priorities will likely include navigating compliance in the wake of CCI rulings, deepening Meta’s AI and creator initiatives, and bolstering the ads ecosystem across Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. His appointment is expected to be formalised at the Meta India Growth Summit scheduled later this year.