NatWest has increased its workforce in India by 43 per cent over the past five years, making the country home to nearly one-third of its global employees, while its UK headcount has declined during the same period.
According to the bank’s annual reports, NatWest’s global workforce has remained broadly stable between 2020 and 2025. However, its UK workforce fell by 9 per cent, with 3,588 roles reduced, while its India headcount grew by 5,713 employees.
As a result, employees based in India now account for around 32 per cent of NatWest’s global workforce, up from 21 per cent in 2020. Meanwhile, the share of employees based in the UK has declined from 68 to 64 per cent over the same period.
Initially established to support customer service operations, NatWest’s India centres now handle a broader range of functions, including software engineering, data analytics, project management, finance, HR, internal audit and other corporate services.
The bank said the workforce expansion reflects its investment in specialist capabilities to meet changing customer and business needs. As part of this strategy, NatWest recently opened a new engineering hub in Bengaluru, complementing its existing operations in Chennai.
India has become one of NatWest’s largest talent hubs outside the UK, supporting the bank’s growing focus on technology and digital capabilities.
The shift reflects a broader trend among global financial institutions to diversify their talent footprint by expanding technology, operations and corporate functions in India. Increasingly, banks are leveraging the country’s skilled workforce to build engineering capabilities, strengthen digital transformation efforts and support global business operations.
