When British retailer Tesco first set up a back-office in India two decades ago, its team largely handled basic IT and finance tasks for UK operations. Today, its Bengaluru campus has evolved into a “strategic engine,” designing stores, conducting vendor due diligence, and running advanced analytics to forecast demand and shape customer behavior — all from thousands of miles away.
Tesco’s transformation reflects the meteoric rise of India’s Global Capability Centres (GCCs) — once captive call centres, now high-value hubs for finance, design, research, AI-driven automation, and more. Over 1,700 multinationals, from Google and Goldman Sachs to Victoria’s Secret, now operate GCCs in India, employing two million people and generating $65bn in annual revenue. Consulting firm EY projects the sector will top $100bn by 2030, growing at 14% annually.
Why India?
Executives point to more than just lower costs. India offers a rare concentration of engineers, data scientists, designers, and AI specialists — a talent pool that’s hard to replicate elsewhere. “You could hire these people in the US,” said Dan Schiappa of US cybersecurity firm Arctic Wolf, “but the availability of talent in one location made Bengaluru very attractive.”
Supportive policies and cheaper real estate are also pushing GCCs into smaller cities such as Nashik, where Pernod Ricard has opened a new centre. The expansion has fueled India’s office space market: nearly one-third of all commercial leasing last year came from GCC demand, according to consultancy ANAROCK.
A Second Headquarters?
For some firms, Indian GCCs are no longer just back-offices but “second headquarters.” US retailer Target, for instance, runs significant operations from India, where local leaders now drive global business outcomes. Lalit Ahuja of ANSR, which has set up one in ten GCCs in India, says it’s no longer far-fetched to imagine companies shifting headquarters to India as digital adoption becomes central across industries.
Challenges Ahead
Yet this rapid expansion faces serious hurdles. Infrastructure in cities like Bengaluru is already stretched, with many GCCs relying on private water tankers instead of piped supply. Complex compliance and tax laws also frustrate businesses.
More critically, geopolitics looms large. With US lawmakers proposing tariffs or taxes on firms outsourcing jobs overseas, fears are growing that India’s crown jewel could face headwinds from rising protectionism. “Disruptive nationalist trends could come in the way of future growth,” warns Ahuja.
For now, GCCs embody what he calls “intellectual arbitrage” — where strategic decisions and future products for the world’s biggest brands are being shaped not in New York or London, but in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, or Nashik.
