Top 7 Countries Emerging as Global Capability Center Hotspots (Beyond India)

Mexico is receiving traction as a GCC location due to its proximity and increasing pool of engineering talent from the United States. Cities such as Guadalajara and Monterrey support innovation laboratories and IT development for top firms. Mexico provides proximal benefits with time-field alignment, with favorable trade policies and competitive costs under USMCA.

• More than 80 global technology and finance firms operate the captive center in Guadalajara, known as Mexico’s “Silicon Valley.”

• The proximity to the US offers 75% overlap in commercial hours, making it ideal for real-time cooperation with North America.

Vietnam’s rapidly growing technical education and low operational costs have attracted major GCC investments. Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi are looking at software development, digital changes, and growth in Fintech GCC. The country’s focus on STEM education and digital infrastructure makes it an emerging star in the GCC ecosystem.

• Vietnam’s digital economy is estimated to reach $50 billion by 2025. There are more than 50,000 IT graduates every year, and more than 100 new technical GCCs have opened in the last 5 years.
• Ho Chi Minh City is one of the fastest-growing technical outsourcing hubs in Asia.

Romania’s growing IT industry and multilingual workforce support high-level global capacity center functions. Bucharest and Cluj-Napoca have seen increasing interest from companies such as HP, Accenture, and Deloitte for roles in AI, compliance, and cybersecurity. As part of the European Union, Romania ensures data security and regulatory alignment.

• The country has more than 300 SSC/GCCs with a focus on AI, Analytics and Cloud functions. More than 80% of IT employees in Romania are multilingual (English, German, and French).
• Bucharest and Cluj are the main hubs, which have strong EU-alignment data privacy laws support.

Egypt is being recognized as an emerging place in the global GCC scenario. Cairo is attracting companies setting up centers in a large, young population, which is a large center for aid, analytics, and customer aid. Government incentives and digital skills programs have further enhanced the speed.

• The Egyptian IT and shared services sector increased by 16% CAGR between 2018-2023, with over 120 GCCs operating in Cairo alone.
• Under the government-backed initiatives, more than 200,000 youth are being trained in digital skills every year, including AI and data analytics.

Brazil is emerging as a GCC hotspot, especially for companies serving South American markets. São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro offer growing capabilities in a large technology-loving population, better digital infrastructure and finance, clouds, and devops. Brazil combines the scale with regional effects.

• Brazil’s digital change market is expected to increase by $100 billion by 2027. São Paulo and Rio have more than 500,000 IT professionals.
• Companies like Microsoft, Dell, and SAP have expanded their presence in the GCC to take advantage of the regional impact and technical talent of Brazil.

Country Comparison Table

While India remains the powerhouse of global capability centers, diversification, operational risk mitigation, and regional expertise requirements are motivating enterprises to discover new GCC locations. Countries such as Poland, the Philippines, and Vietnam are investing hugely in education, digital infrastructure, and policy reforms to attract GCC investments. These emerging hotspots provide the correct balance of talent, cost-effectiveness, and strategic location benefits.

In the coming years, the global GCC landscape will be more multi-nodal and dynamic. Companies choosing to create a GCC ecosystem distributed in these emerging destinations will have flexibility, innovation agility, and wide access to the special talent pool. As the world redefines globalisation in the post-epidemic era, these seven countries are in a good position to share headlines with the rich GCC region of India.