Bank of America to hire 1,000 in Indian tech unit - AND, they ain't 'native americans' either

www.excite.com ^ | 2/18/04 | Reuters

[harpu]

BANGALORE, Feb 18 (Reuters) - Bank of America Corp (BAC) said on Wednesday it would set up a wholly owned Indian subsidiary for its back-office operations and aimed to employ 1,000 people in the unit by the middle of 2005.

The bank, which has already outsourced a number of jobs to emerging markets, said it expected to set up Continuum Solutions Pvt Ltd in the southern city of Hyderabad in the second quarter of 2004.

The news could fuel the debate over outsourcing in the U.S. presidential campaign, where Democratic frontrunner John Kerry has hit out at companies that move jobs to countries such as India.

BoA's unit, which aims to hire 500 people by December 2004, would provide back-office support for processes within the bank's main business segments, including consumer, commercial and corporate, and enable the bank to cut costs, the company said.

BoA, which has faced protests over decisions to outsource jobs overseas, is already among the biggest clients of leading Indian software exporters such as Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys Technologies Ltd (INFY), India's largest and second-largest exporters, analysts said.

The bank has said the move to set up the Indian subsidiary would mean some job losses from its global operations, but BoA officials said in October the company had not decided which functions would be moved to India.

Analysts say two-thirds of U.S. banks outsource work to developing, low-cost countries such as India, China and Russia.

In Europe, HSBC (HSBA), ABN AMRO (AAH) and Deutsche Bank (DBKGn) have been among the companies to shift work overseas. Western banks have outsourced IT work, human resources work, securities back office processing and some research.

[harpu]

Oh, oh, Willie Green...those "skys are falling" drums are beating again.

[Semper Paratus]

BOA is buying out my bank Fleet.
Do I want my checking account processed in Bangalore?

[StatesEnemy]

Joke all ya want, but Bush is going to LOSE because of this issue.

[The Red Zone]

Kerry will probably self destruct enough to prevent that from happening but it will be surprisingly close.

[The Red Zone]

willllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[AppyPappy]

Some Indian employees are rumored to have been selling data. This isn't going to be good.

[AppyPappy]

Best I can tell, Bush doesn't work for BAC

[kittymyrib]

I do NOT want my banking done in India. Can someone please suggest a bank that does its business in the US?

[Thebaddog]

I've called customer support for several devices and accounts in the last three months and I was routed offshore every time. Some were OK, but it was a very uneven performance of the English language. And forget about subtlety, it's all off the script over there.

[Poundstone]

"Joke all ya want, but Bush is going to LOSE because of this issue."

A year ago, I would have said no way. Today, however, I think you may just be right. I think a solid majority of Americans are totally fed up with shipping US jobs overseas. Fasten your seatbelt: there's going to be a BIG reaction at the polls this November.

[AlbertWang]

Refusing to Bank with companies who off shore their services will make a difference. I find the "A" in BOA ironic.

I bank with a small, local bank, I quit BOA 5 or 6 years ago.

[MEG33]

Kerry is going to stop this outsourcing and create 500000 jobs.He thinks health care is a right and that schools need more money.(The Socialist Party is working on its endorsement announcement)

If you want to talk national security,bring it on,he says.He will think of something.

[cricket]

"Some Indian employees are rumored to have been selling data. This isn't going to be good."

Rumors are not good. . .

[TheBattman]

You are on to an important issue...

Regardless of what side of the "outsourcing" trend you are on, does anyone at all feel comfortable having your personal financial information exported to India (or any other foreign country) for "processing"? This is particularly true when you look at all the international scam and ID theft problems.

It's one thing to export manufacturing jobs, it's quite another when even the service jobs are being exported - especially ones with such sensitive underpinnings.

What? Me worry? ---- You bet!

If US consumers would grow a set of nads, we could speak with our $$ and not do business with those companies that don't want to do their business here. Instead, we just roll over and keep on supporting these folks.

[LoudRepublicangirl]

I am cancelling my credit card with BOA today.

[ARCADIA]

Jobs will become the litmus test of the 2004 election and GW will lose on that one. 45% of the population will never vote for Bush or his Republican Party, and those that do are asking themselves whether they are better off now then they were 4 years ago.

If you are part of the 90% that live off a take home paycheck, the answer is No. The tax cuts and low interests rates cannot offset the missing raises, overtime, bonuses, option payoffs, and job opportunities of previous years. Even the more practical ones would rather have an overactive economy with some inflation to get some millage out of their locked in low rate mortgages.

GW is a far cry from an overpowering political force. His record has made him vulnerable, and it will be hard for him to run away from that.

[netmilsmom]

NO!!
Information is being sold on the street. I'll find the thread that had this ASAP.

[gonewt]

> I am cancelling my credit card with BOA today.

Right on!

I closed all of my BoA accounts last year, after they started ruthlessly firing hundreds of Americans and replacing them with overseas, third-world people (and often, they forced the outgoing Americans to TRAIN the Indians).

BoA says they have to "cut costs," yet have no problem paying their upper-level folks obscene, multi-million dollar packages. Not to mention the $140 million they spent on the naming rights to "Bank of America Stadium" in Charlotte.

[PJ-Comix]

Wasn't B of A supporters of the Clintons? I remember reading something to that effect about their bigwig.

[NetValue]

It's true that Bush could lose on this issue.

Americans have had a bellyfull of "foreign issues": UN permission, job exporting, unsecured borders, illegal immigration, amnesty, illegal alien welfare, sanctuary, and foreign campaign contributions to name only a few.

We need an American President.

Any candidate, even (I hate to say it) a democrat, could win with a dramatic "Americanism" campaign.

Message to Karl Rove: America FIRST!