Hyderabad: Hyderabad has emerged as one of the world’s fastest-growing destinations for Global Capability Centers (GCCs), securing the 2nd position globally in the newly released Global GCC Cities Index 2026, behind only Bengaluru.
The report highlights Hyderabad’s growing reputation as a preferred destination for multinational corporations looking to establish technology, engineering, AI, finance, and digital transformation centers.
According to the report, Hyderabad’s biggest strength lies in its combination of infrastructure growth, talent ecosystem, policy support, and large-scale expansion potential.
Hyderabad Overtakes Major Global Cities
The Global GCC Cities Index 2026 ranked Hyderabad ahead of major international business hubs, including:
- Warsaw (Poland)
- Kraków (Poland)
- Manila (Philippines)
- Mexico City (Mexico)
- Budapest (Hungary)
- Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia)
- Lisbon (Portugal)
The report described Hyderabad as a major hub for “new-age GCC setups”, driven by rapid urban expansion and strong government support.
What Are GCCs?
Global Capability Centers, commonly known as GCCs, are offshore or global operations centers established by multinational corporations to handle critical business functions such as:
- Software engineering
- Artificial Intelligence
- Cybersecurity
- Finance and analytics
- Research & Development
- Cloud operations
- Product development
- Customer support
India has now become the world’s largest GCC destination, hosting over 2,100 GCCs employing nearly 2.36 million professionals.
Why Hyderabad Is Becoming a GCC Magnet
Over the last few years, Hyderabad has rapidly transformed into one of India’s biggest global technology and innovation hubs.
Several factors are driving multinational companies toward Hyderabad:
- World-class IT infrastructure
- Large talent pool from engineering colleges
- Lower operational costs compared to Bengaluru
- Availability of Grade-A office space
- Strong metro and ORR connectivity
- Government support and fast approvals
- Rapid urban expansion toward western Hyderabad
The report specifically noted that Hyderabad represents a “structured growth story” where planned infrastructure and ecosystem development are attracting new GCC investments.
Global Companies Expanding in Hyderabad
Several major international companies have either expanded or announced new GCC operations in Hyderabad during 2025 and 2026.
Recent examples include:
- BASF is setting up global services and digital hubs
- Protolabs is launching a new engineering GCC
- Sonatype is expanding cybersecurity operations
- Major investments by healthcare and AI firms at BioAsia 2026
German chemical giant BASF recently announced that Hyderabad was selected after a global evaluation process because of the city’s talent ecosystem and business-friendly environment. The company is expected to create around 3,000 jobs through its new Hyderabad hubs.
US-based Protolabs also announced a major GCC in Hyderabad focused on advanced engineering and digital manufacturing technologies.
Hyderabad’s GCC Boom by Numbers
Industry reports and GCC ecosystem trackers estimate that Hyderabad currently hosts:
- 350–430+ GCCs
- More than 300,000 professionals
- Nearly 20% of India’s GCC ecosystem
Some industry estimates suggest Hyderabad captured nearly 40–46% of India’s new GCC launches during 2025-26, in some periods even outpacing Bengaluru in fresh additions.
Telangana Government’s Aggressive Push
The Telangana government has been aggressively promoting Hyderabad as a global investment and innovation destination.
At the recent Nasscom GCC Summit 2026, Telangana IT Minister D. Sridhar Babu stated that Hyderabad added over 75 new GCCs in the last year, with plans to attract another 100 GCCs in 2026 alone.
The state government is also pushing multiple mega infrastructure projects to support long-term growth, including:
- Future City project
- AI City initiative
- Metro rail expansion
- Regional Ring Road (RRR)
- Musi Riverfront redevelopment
- New airports and industrial corridors
Officials believe these projects will help Hyderabad evolve into a global business city over the next decade.
Hyderabad Competing With Bengaluru
While Bengaluru remains India’s largest GCC hub because of its engineering scale, Hyderabad is increasingly emerging as the preferred destination for:
- New-age AI GCCs
- Cloud and cybersecurity centers
- Global digital operations
- Life sciences and pharma GCCs
- Engineering and product development hubs
Industry experts say many global companies now prefer Hyderabad because it offers a balance between infrastructure quality, talent availability, and comparatively lower operational pressure than Bengaluru.
From Cost Center to Innovation Hub
The GCC report also noted that India’s role in the global economy has fundamentally changed.
Earlier, GCCs were mainly focused on back-office outsourcing and cost savings. Today, Indian GCCs are handling:
- AI development
- Global product engineering
- Cybersecurity operations
- Research and innovation
- Enterprise transformation
The report summarized the transformation in a single line:
“Then → Execution. Now → Ownership.”
Hyderabad’s Next Growth Phase
Analysts believe Hyderabad’s GCC ecosystem is still in an early expansion phase and could witness even larger investments over the next five years.
With multinational companies increasingly shifting strategic operations to India, Hyderabad is expected to remain one of the biggest beneficiaries of the global GCC boom.
The city’s rapid infrastructure expansion, strong government backing, growing startup ecosystem, and large engineering talent base are now positioning Hyderabad not just as an IT city — but as one of the world’s most important emerging global capability hubs.
