Synopsis- These IT Cities have formed an Indian powerhouse GCC triangle, which has been driving global innovation, R&D, and business operations for Fortune 500 firms and tech unicorns. Together they bring- talent, cost efficiency, and policy support, which has made India the GCC leader in 2025.
Global Capability Centres or GCCs, are the nerve centres which are powering multinational innovation and business operations from India and are the heart of the nation’s tech industry in 2025. As global giants are scaling up their digital, R&D, and analytics footprints, out of all the major cities of India- Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Pune have emerged as India’s undisputed GCC Triangle. This article is going to delve into why these cities lead the charge, and how each one of them is rewriting the country’s commercial real estate.
India’s GCC Boom
As of now, India has been hosting more than 53% of the world’s GCCs, out of an estimated 3,200 such centres globally, almost 1,700 are in India which is building the nation’s reputation as a strategic hub for R&D, global operations, and digital transformation. These hubs are no longer mere back-office setups, instead they are now the arena for product ownership, innovation, and enterprise-wide digital transformation for the Fortune 500 companies as well as the tech unicorns. The three cities, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Pune, have been dominating this landscape, which are collectively accounting for a substantial majority of around 65% of India’s GCC ecosystem.
Bengaluru: The GCC Gold Standard
- GCC Count: 487+
- Key Industries: Technology, Banking, IT, AI/ML, Fintech, R&D
- Major Companies: Amazon, Goldman Sachs, Google, Microsoft, SAP, Walmart
- Key factors leading to leadership in GCCs
- Large Talent Pool: Having the strongest engineering and technology clusters, Bengaluru was bound to be India’s top choice for new GCCs, over any other newly established GCCs in 2025.
- Innovation and R&D Ecosystem: housing over thousand tech startups and world-class infrastructure, Bengaluru has been offering both cost advantages and even providing access to leading tech talents.
- Policy Support: Karnataka’s proactive policies have streamlined business operations and driven heavy investments in the tech space.
- Wide Capabilities: AI, software development, fintech, product engineering, and a number of other technological advancements are present in the Indian silicon valley- Bengaluru, which leads across these domains, attracting both established and new age global organisations.
NOTE: The above table states GCC UNITS, which is a single centre within a city or region, but sometimes a company can have multiple units in the same city and all those units are considered part of one GCC.
Hyderabad: India’s Fastest-Growing GCC Star
- GCC Count: 273+ (19-21% of national total)
- Key Industries: Pharma, IT, Aerospace, Biotechnology, BFSI
- Major Companies: Amazon, Bayer, Sandoz, Roche, BlackBerry, AstraZeneca
- Hyderabad’s Distinctive Edge
- Cost-Effective Real Estate: This city is able to offer office spaces at around 20-30% lower than Bengaluru, giving it immense value from the global firms which are scaling up rapidly.
- Policy Support: Various initiatives such as TS-iPASS and T-Hub incubator, along with focus on rapid infrastructure expansion makes Hyderabad a perfect market for both tech and biotech GCCs.
- Talent Pools: The city has been successful in attracting skilled professionals, especially in the field of life sciences, BFSI, and other emerging tech sectors.
- Fortune 500 favourite: Global organisations such as Amazon and AstraZeneca have digital and innovation branches operating in the city.
Also read: Top Indian Cities Set to Become Smart Cities by 2030 – Is Your City Included?
Pune: The Engineering and Analytics Powerhouse
- GCC Count:178
- Key Industries: Manufacturing, IT, Engineering, Automotive, Analytics
- Major Companies: HSBC, John Deere, Allianz, Mercedes-Benz, Cummins, Mastercard
- Pune’s Rising Profile
- Academic and Research Centers Proximity: Pune is home to top universities of the country, which also brings a large talent pool with it, that has been fueling its tech and engineering GCCs.
- Lower Operational Costs: Compared to its other two counter-parts commercial rents and wages in Pune are much lower, making it attractive for cost-conscious innovation centers.
- IT and Manufacturing Ecosystem: After evolving from a manufacturing-based industry, Pune has now been hosting and thriving with analytics, R&D, and product engineering capabilities, which makes it a great destination for specialized GCCs.
- Strategic Location: Its proximity with Mumbai, the financial capital of the country, gives it a distinct business and logistics edge compared to the other two cities.
| City | GCC Count (2025) | % of India’s GCCs | Key Sectors | Unique Strengths |
| Bengaluru | 487+ | 33-40% | Tech, AI, IT, Fintech, R&D | Unmatched tech talent, mature ecosystem, startup capital |
| Hyderabad | 273+ | 19-21% | Pharma, IT, BFSI, Aerospace | Cost efficiency, fast policy rollout, science clusters |
| Pune | 178 | 10-11% | Engineering, Automotive, Analytics | Talent pipeline, low cost, R&D, proximity to Mumbai |
Trends that are Redefining this GCC Triangle, even in 2025
- Office Space Demand: Bengaluru has been leading with 3.3 million square foot of GCC leasing in 2025, while Hyderabad logged about 0.82million, and Pune continues rising as a Tier-1 alternative.
- Talent Pool: Bengaluru houses the highest tech workforce, and Hyderabad draws specialized talent in the BFSI and life sciences space , while Pune is still unique for its engineering and automotive expertise.
- Variety of Working areas: Where Bengaluru and Hyderabad focus on cutting edge technologies and strategic R&D projects, Pune dominates in the manufacturing and analytics driven operations.
The Bottom Line
Even though a number of tier 2 cities are coming up, this triangle, consisting of Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Pune will always continue to dominate the Indian GCC growth, even in the coming years. Key factors such as policy support, world class infrastructure, and a dynamic talent pool are very unique to these three cities, and this gives them a strong foundation and the leadership status. From the global enterprises point of view, India’s GCC Triangle is still going to remain as the go-to ecosystem to drive innovation, efficiency, and future ready business operations.
Written by Adithya Menon
