India’s Office Space Leasing by GCCs Expected to Rise 15

Global Capability Centres (GCCs) have become the major growth driver of India's commercial real estate market, with leasing predicted to grow by 15–20 per cent in the next two years, as per a report published on Wednesday.

Real estate services company Colliers has forecast that GCCs will occupy between 60 and 65 million square feet of Grade A office space until 2027.

Since 2021, these centres have already taken on lease around 100 million square feet in India's seven major cities, accounting for 36 per cent of overall office space take-up. The report further observed that leasing by global corporates is also expected to touch 28 million square feet by 2025, almost two times the 2021 level.

Also, GCCs' proportion of total office leasing, which had fallen to below 30 per cent in 2022, has bounced back sharply to almost 40 per cent in 2025.

“Capability centres in India are steadily evolving into innovation-driven, domain-specialised, and technologically integrated centres, and are likely to drive over 40 per cent of India’s office space demand,” said Arpit Mehrotra, Managing Director, Office Services, Colliers India.

Technology firms are at the forefront, representing 37 per cent of GCC demand, followed by the banking, financial services, and engineering industries, which are expanding fast and will be responsible for 40–50 per cent of future leasing activity.

Inside GCCs, engineering and manufacturing occupier presence has risen from 11 per cent to 17 per cent, demonstrating increased demands in R&D and product engineering.

Bengaluru and Hyderabad have contributed 60 per cent of GCC leasing since 2021, while Chennai has witnessed a 5.3 times surge in GCC leases this year from 2021.

“Flex spaces too, are likely to gain traction as GCCs seek greater scalability and agility in their workplace portfolios. At the same time, Tier II cities are likely to see a steady uptick in GCC activity, supported by cost arbitrage, infrastructure development, and talent availability,” said Vimal Nadar, National Director and Head of Research, Colliers India.

US-based GCCs have accounted for close to 70 per cent of overall GCC absorption in the country since 2021. In recent years, though, GCCs from the UK, EMEA, and APAC have increased their presence, consistently building their base in India.