Citigroup shifts 1,000 tech jobs to India amid China cuts, H-1B fee hike

Earlier this year, Citi announced that it would cut around 3,500 jobs at its technology centres in China as part of a global effort to simplify and shrink global tech operations

American banking giant Citigroup has moved nearly 1,000 technology roles to its support centres in India, according to Bloomberg. This follows the group’s announcement earlier this year that it would cut around 3,500 jobs at its technology centres in China as part of a global effort to simplify and shrink global tech operations to improve risk and data management.

 

This also comes amid the United States (US) President Donald Trump-led administration has imposed a whopping $100,000 fee on new H-1B visa applications. According to experts, this may push Wall Street banks to lean more on Indian global capability centres (GCCs) and hire more locals for newer roles. Citigroup already employs about 33,000 people in India, largely across these GCCs located in cities such as Bengaluru, Chennai, Pune and Mumbai, according to Bloomberg.

 

While announcing the job cuts in China, Citi said the roles would be moved to its other technology centres, though it did not specify the locations. A Reuters report in June noted that the bank had also scaled back in the US, Indonesia, the Philippines and Poland as part of its global restructuring plan. Latest reports suggest that India may emerge as a preferred destination for these roles.

 

India's GCC landscape

 

India currently hosts around 1,760 GCCs, a number expected to exceed 2,000 by next year, according to Nasscom. EY estimates the industry’s market size, currently at $64 billion, could reach $110 billion by 2030. Many of these centres, operating as offshore extensions of headquarters, work on advanced technologies across sectors such as retail, automotive, healthcare and banking, with growing roles in product R&D, analytics and design. Senior executives often operate from these centres, managing teams worldwide.