Version 1: Blackstone picks Bengaluru for its first global capability centre outside the US

The US investment firm will run finance, tech, HR, legal and compliance work from Bengaluru, with at least 100 people by the end of the year.

Picture a firm that looks after nearly $1.4 trillion of other people's money. Now picture some of its finance, tech and legal work being done from an office in Bengaluru. On 27 October 2026, the US investment firm Blackstone said in a release that the firm has opened a new office in Bengaluru, its second in India. Reports call this its first global capability centre outside the United States.

That sounds like a mouthful. So here is the news in plain words, and why a young person in India may care.

Who is Blackstone?

Blackstone is an investment company based in New York City. Think of it like a very big team that takes money from investors and puts that money into companies, office buildings, warehouses, roads and loans. The goal is to grow the money over time.

One of the things Blackstone does is called private equity. That means buying a stake in a business that is not on the stock market, or buying a listed one and taking it private, then trying to make it run better. Imagine buying a share in a busy samosa stall, helping the owner open three more stalls, and later selling your share for more than you paid.

Reports say the money Blackstone manages has grown four times in the past ten years. A bigger business needs many more people to keep the accounts, run the computers and follow the rules. That is where Bengaluru comes in.

So what is a global capability centre?

A global capability centre, or GCC, is an office that a multinational company sets up in another country to do work for the whole company. According to Wikipedia, this work can include finance, tax, IT support, engineering and much more.

Think of a cricket team that plays all over the world. The players are on the field, but the team also needs analysts, physios and video staff. Those people may sit far away and still help every match. A GCC is a bit like that support crew, but for a company.

Four steps showing how a global capability centre works: a global firm needs support work, opens its own office in India, Indian teams run finance, tech and HR, and they work with teams worldwide — How a global capability centre works, in four simple steps.

India is the top home for these centres. Wikipedia says India had about 1,700 GCCs employing 1.9 million people as of 2025, in cities like Bengaluru, Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai and Noida. The number was expected to reach up to 2,200 by 2030.

What will the Bengaluru office do?

Blackstone's vice chairman and chief financial officer, Michael Chae, said the centre will support finance, technology, human resources, legal affairs and compliance. A chief financial officer, or CFO, is the person in charge of a company's money. Compliance means making sure the company follows every law and rule, like a referee checking that nobody breaks the rules of the game.

The office sits in an office park jointly owned by Blackstone Real Estate and Prestige Group, the Bengaluru property developer. Blackstone's investment team will stay in Mumbai, which remains the firm's India headquarters.

Reports say the Bengaluru team will not be a stand alone back office. It will work closely with Blackstone teams around the world. Blackstone has also hired senior people for key roles, including engineering, and that engineering team will work directly with the firm's global chief technology officer.

Who is running it?

The centre will be led by Susan Yung, a senior managing director in the investment operations team of Blackstone Credit and Insurance. She has more than 25 years of experience in financial services and has lived in Bengaluru before, while working at Goldman Sachs.

How many people will work there?

The numbers are small for now. Chae said Blackstone has about 170 people in India: around 90 in Mumbai and about 80 in Bengaluru. In his words, "Bengaluru currently has about 80 employees, and that team will grow, as will our Mumbai team."

The plan is for the Bengaluru centre to have at least 100 people by the end of the year.

Two panels: about 80 people in Bengaluru now, and at least 100 by the end of the year — The Bengaluru team is set to grow from about 80 to at least 100 people by year end.

The office space looks much bigger than today's team. A property report said a Blackstone unit leased about 4.5 lakh square feet at Prestige Lakeshore Drive in Bengaluru for five years, across 10 floors, at a rent of nearly Rs 4.16 crore a month, based on lease papers seen by the property data firm Propstack.

How big is Blackstone in India?

Very big. Chae said India is "one of our most important markets globally". Blackstone came to India 20 years ago. It now puts money into property, private equity, credit and insurance, and infrastructure here.

It holds about $22 billion of property in India and controls more than 150 million square feet of office and retail space.
It helped launch five of the six listed REITs in India, including the very first one. A REIT, or real estate investment trust, lets ordinary people buy a small slice of big office buildings, a bit like many friends chipping in to own one tea stall together and sharing the rent.
Blackstone has taken 14 companies public in India. Going public means listing a company on the stock market so anyone can buy its shares.

Blackstone has put about $51 billion into India so far. Reports say it now wants to double that to $100 billion over the next five years.

A number counting up to 100 billion dollars, Blackstone's India investment goal, up from about 51 billion dollars so far — Blackstone aims to take its India investment from about $51 billion to $100 billion in five years.

What this means for work in Bengaluru

For students and freshers, GCCs are a big source of office work. They hire people for accounts, data, software, legal checks and HR. Bengaluru has long been the top city for these centres. A Knight Frank report quoted in the same property news said Bengaluru remained the leading GCC city this year, though its share of GCC office leasing fell to 36% from 48% as Hyderabad, Mumbai and Pune caught up.

Many people also worry that AI will take away office work. Chae spoke on this too. He said Blackstone does not view AI as a death blow for IT services companies. He added that such firms have a chance to get ahead of the change by building their own tools.

Watch: two decades of Blackstone in India

This video from Blackstone looks back on Blackstone's first 20 years in India.

Watch on YouTube

The big picture

Global firms used to come to India mainly to save on costs. Now many come for skilled people too. Blackstone's move adds one more big name to Bengaluru's long list of global offices. The team is small today, about 80 people. But the firm's plans for India are huge, and the new centre is built to grow.

As it was first published

Blackstone picks Bengaluru for its first global capability centre outside the US