In a move that reflects rising interest in India’s offshore ecosystem, US Bancorp is in discussions to lease over 650,000 sq ft of office space in Chennai to establish its first global capability centre (GCC) in the country.
The proposed facility is expected to come up at Embassy Office Parks REIT’s Embassy TechZone campus and will be developed through a build-operate-transfer-service model with Cognizant Technology Solutions, according to people familiar with the matter.
Under this arrangement, Cognizant will initially build and operate the centre before eventually transferring it to the bank. The monthly rent is estimated at Rs 4.5–5 crore, making it one of the largest recent office leasing deals in Chennai.
The upcoming GCC will support technology, analytics and back-office operations for the bank’s global business. Sources also said the Minneapolis-headquartered lender is evaluating an additional 4 lakh sq ft of office space across Bengaluru and Hyderabad as part of its expansion strategy in India.
Emails sent to Cognizant and Embassy Office Parks REIT did not receive a response till press time.
This move aligns with the bank’s strategy to bring more technology and operations in-house. Earlier industry reports suggested that US Bancorp plans to hire 3,000–5,000 employees in India over the next 5 years to strengthen digital banking, data analytics and cloud capabilities.
Experts say GCCs are now one of the biggest drivers of office leasing demand in India’s top cities. American firms, in particular, have expanded rapidly, with GCCs accounting for more than 2/3 of their leasing activity.
India currently has over 1,600 GCCs employing more than 1.6 million professionals. Key sectors include banking, financial services, healthcare and technology, with companies using India as a hub for innovation and digital product development.
Financial services firms are among the fastest-growing GCC occupiers. Citizens Financial Group recently launched a GCC in Hyderabad with Cognizant, while Optum has also leased large office space in the same campus.
Embassy Office Parks REIT owns over 50 million sq ft of office space across 5 Indian cities and continues to expand its Chennai portfolio amid strong demand from GCCs and technology firms.
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