TCS bags $690 million contract from M&G Prudential

India’s largest IT services exporter Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) continued with its spree of signing large deals with the latest being a $690-million contract spread over 10 years with UK-headquartered M&G Prudential. M&G Prudential is the savings and investments business of Prudential and now, TCS will administer the former’s 4 million life and pension contracts by moving it onto a digital platform. Earlier, this contract was managed by Capita, an IT outsourcer based in the UK. As part of the deal, around 1,100 people earlier engaged in this activity will be transferred from Capita to TCS’ UK subsidiary Diligenta. Another 700 people in India with Capita will also move to TCS. The Indian IT services leader will also assume responsibility for the operation of some of Prudential’s internal IT infrastructure. This will enable Prudential to focus efficiently on its digital transformation. As part of this initiative, around 180 people employed by M&G Prudential will shift to TCS.

The deal with M&G Prudential will also witness the implementation of TCS BaNCS, the core banking solution of the IT major. M&G Prudential’s chief executive John Foley said: “This partnership with TCS is an essential element of our strategy to create a digitally-enabled business. Our customers will receive a better service day-in and day-out, as a result, and our colleagues will be better equipped to provide that service.” According to Foley, TCS emerged as the clear leader in a full market review undertaken by M&G Prudential. “Given its scale, its digital expertise and proven experience in the administration of savings and investments, TCS is the best choice.”

Commenting on the deal, TCS CEO Rajesh Gopinathan said: “We will propel this digital transformation through TCS’ continuous investments in digital and technology services. We will also bring the combined strength and capabilities of our deep domain expertise in BFSI and TCS’ strong record of managed policy administration in the UK life & pension industry.” This deal follows close on the heels of a similar $2-billion deal announced earlier this month with Transamerica. TCS had said it will digitalise the life insurance and annuities business of Transamerica, which is a leading provider of life insurance, retirement and investment solutions in the US. The deal will entail servicing 10 million insurance policies through a single platform. TCS had planned to make make job offers to about 2,200 applicable Transamerica employees, as part of the deal, which also envisaged the roll-out of TCS BaNCS. M&G Prudential has total assets under management of £337 billion and more than 7 million customers. Digital has become a key strategic element for TCS’ growth strategy. This segment accounted for 22.1% of the revenue at the end of the third quarter of FY18. According to TCS, digital revenue recorded a sequential growth of 14%.

Among the large Indian IT services companies, TCS has been in the forefront of bagging multi-billion dollar IT outsourcing deals. In December last year, it had renewed its contract with Nielsen, a global TV measurement company in a deal worth over $2.25 billion. The TCS scrip closed at Rs 2850.85 on the BSE on Tuesday, registering a gain of 3.77%.