India’s Global Capability Centers are no longer quiet back offices tucked away for cost savings. They are becoming the nerve centres of global strategy. In 2025, GCC leasing activity touched a record 31 million square feet, according to a new report by JLL. The scale is striking, but the deeper story lies in how Indian cities are carving out distinct identities within this ecosystem.
The Great Shift: From Cost Arbitrage to Capability
For years, multinational corporations viewed India primarily as a cost-efficient operations base. That narrative has shifted. More than 90 percent of GCC activity today is concentrated in Tier I cities, accounting for over 263 million square feet of Grade A office stock across the top seven urban centres. Over the past decade, GCCs have driven 40 percent of all office leasing activity in these cities.
In just the last two years, more than 200 new GCCs have entered India. Projections suggest the total GCC footprint could cross 350 million square feet within the next three to four years. Seventy percent of demand between 2018 and 2025 has come from US-headquartered firms, underscoring India’s role as a strategic extension of American enterprises.
The change is structural. Companies are no longer choosing cities simply for cheaper real estate or labour. They are aligning location strategy with sector expertise, talent pools, research capabilities, and long-term scalability.
Bengaluru: The Undisputed Capital
If India’s GCC story has a capital, it is Bengaluru. The city hosts over 900 GCC units and commands a 34 to 39 percent market share. Its dominance is not accidental.
Bengaluru offers a deep technology talent base, strong university pipelines, and decades of experience in IT and engineering services. The city’s ecosystem spans IT and ITeS, advanced research and development in engineering and manufacturing, analytics-led innovation centres, and even retail operations.
This breadth matters. Companies setting up in Bengaluru are not just outsourcing tasks. They are building end-to-end capability centres that handle product development, design, data science, and strategic decision-making. The city’s mature startup culture and venture capital presence further reinforce its position as a global innovation node rather than a back-office destination.
Hyderabad: The Healthcare-Biotech Powerhouse
Hyderabad has emerged as a formidable second pillar, capturing 20 to 23 percent of the overall GCC market. While it has strengths in IT and analytics, its defining edge lies in healthcare, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and life sciences.
The city’s growth has been supported by policy incentives, infrastructure development, and a rapidly expanding skilled workforce. Semiconductor activity is also gaining traction. Hyderabad’s ability to blend life sciences expertise with analytics and digital capabilities makes it particularly attractive to global healthcare giants.
The rise of sector-specific clustering here reflects a broader trend. GCCs are seeking ecosystems that align closely with their core industries, and Hyderabad’s biotech orientation provides precisely that.
Pune and Chennai: Sector Specialists
Pune has secured between 15 and 20 percent of national GCC activity over the past four years. The city’s appeal lies in its quality of life, engineering talent, and sectoral strengths in BFSI, automotive, IT, manufacturing, and engineering services. Multinationals are drawn to its balance of affordability and capability.
Chennai, meanwhile, continues to consolidate its position as India’s manufacturing and automotive hub. Since 2023, it has recorded strong year-on-year demand growth. Complementary strengths in IT, BFSI, and engineering research and development reinforce its appeal. A strong STEM talent base supports high-value engineering and product development work.
Both cities illustrate how India’s GCC landscape is evolving into a network of specialised hubs rather than a single dominant centre.
Delhi NCR and Mumbai: Corporate Nerve Centres
Delhi NCR has grown into a corporate services powerhouse. With strengths across IT, BFSI, e-commerce, healthcare, consulting, and education, the region benefits from its diverse economic base and proximity to policy-making institutions. It has become a preferred destination for organisations requiring integrated business services and corporate support functions.
Mumbai, as India’s financial capital, continues to attract strategic capability and solutions centres, particularly in banking and financial services. BFSI remains its primary sector of excellence. For financial institutions seeking proximity to markets and regulatory networks, Mumbai offers a natural advantage.
Together, these cities demonstrate that GCC growth is not limited to technology alone. Financial services, consulting, healthcare, and retail are equally central to the story.
Tier II Cities: The New Frontier
While the top metros still dominate, a new chapter is unfolding in Tier II cities. Locations such as Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Jaipur, Coimbatore, Mysuru, and Kochi are gaining attention from global enterprises.
The drivers are pragmatic. Companies can achieve cost savings ranging from 10 to 35 percent while tapping into fresh talent pools. Infrastructure upgrades, digital connectivity, and progressive state policies have reduced the disadvantages these cities once faced.
Coimbatore’s engineering talent, Mysuru’s IT capabilities, and Kochi’s emerging tech ecosystem highlight how distributed innovation is taking shape. Organisations are increasingly viewing geographic diversification as a hedge against risk and a path to operational resilience.
This expansion is not merely about lower expenses. It reflects the maturation of India’s GCC model into a multi-city framework that combines scale with specialisation.
The Road Ahead
India’s GCC landscape is entering a phase of acceleration rather than simple expansion. Location strategy is becoming a competitive differentiator. Companies are mapping their global value chains onto India’s urban geography, choosing cities based on industry alignment, workforce depth, and long-term growth potential.
The numbers suggest sustained momentum. With projections of 350 million square feet of GCC footprint in the coming years and continued inflows from US-based corporations, India is cementing its place in global corporate strategy.
What began as an experiment in outsourcing has evolved into a sophisticated ecosystem of capability building. The story of India’s GCCs is no longer about cost advantage. It is about strategic integration, sector expertise, and the creation of distributed centres of excellence across a rapidly diversifying urban landscape.
