Capgemini acquires WNS for $3.3 billion to expand agentic-AI capabilities

The Capgemini logo is seen at the company’s office in Issy-les-Moulineaux near Paris France, February 9, 2024. REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes
| Photo Credit:
GONZALO FUENTES

Thirty years after it was set up by British Airways as a captive unit in India, business process management (BPM) firm WNS has been acquired by French consulting major Capgemini for $3.3 billion in cash. The deal marks one of the largest buyouts in the BPM space and underscores the growing demand for AI-powered, digitally integrated business solutions.  Both companies have a strong footprint in India, together employing over 200,000 people across 24 locations in the country.

With combined revenues of €1.9 billion in 2024 in business process services, the transaction will strengthen Capgemini’s ability to accompany clients on their business and technology transformation journeys, said the company.

Scale, sector edge

“Capgemini’s acquisition of WNS will provide the Group with the scale and vertical sector expertise to capture that rapidly emerging strategic opportunity created by the paradigm shift from traditional BPS to Agentic AI-powered Intelligent Operations,” said Aiman Ezzat, Chief Executive Officer of Capgemini, adding that WNS’s high growth, margin accretive Digital Business Process Services will increase the company’s exposure to the US market, unlocking immediate cross-selling opportunities.

 Keshav R. Murugesh, Chief Executive Officer of WNS, said, “WNS’ complementary portfolio of horizontal and industry-specific solutions will significantly enhance Capgemini’s rapidly growing Business Services footprint, enabling next-generation, data-driven operations across sectors.”

Finding synergies

One of the key challenges could be finding synergies between employees of the two companies. During an analyst call, Capgemini said there is currently no “refined plan” for integrating the two companies, but confirmed that post-merger management teams will include leaders from both Capgemini and WNS. The company also noted that its European headcount will decline from 35 per cent to 30 per cent, while its offshore workforce is expected to rise from 58 per cent to 63 per cent as a result of the merger.

Ashutosh Sharma, VP & Research Director, Forrester, said the acquisition demonstrates the impact of AI in reshaping business processes. “ Capgemini gains scale and process depth, while WNS taps into cutting-edge AI capabilities. While there may be no immediate disruption to the workforce or their India operations, the long-term trajectory is clear: automation will drive significant efficiency gains which in turn will inevitably lead to workforce optimisation,” said Sharma.

Similarly, Sanchit Vir Gogia, CEO and Chief Analyst at Greyhound Research, argued the move should be seen as a control-layer acquisition where it can use WNS’s operational foundation, trusted by over 600 clients across banking, healthcare, travel, utilities, and more.

“Capgemini is betting that in a GenAI-led market, the differentiation will come from who can embed the models into real processes, in real-time, across real industries. That’s where WNS’s BPO playbook — historically focused on outcome-based pricing, F&A maturity, and embedded analytics — provides a ready-made testbed for Capgemini to deploy its AI stack,” said Gogia.

Published on July 7, 2025