- Investment banking GCCs in India pay the highest salaries across BFSI for tech and data roles, especially at senior levels.
- Data scientists and full-stack developers in investment banking earn meaningfully more than counterparts in retail banking, financial services, and insurance.
- Rising demand for AI, cloud, cybersecurity, big data, and product-centric skills is driving sharp pay premiums for specialised roles.
- Insurance and financial services GCCs are rapidly lifting senior pay, while retail banking offers steadier but lower long-term compensation.
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The recent report by Careernet covering around 50,000 professionals in India’s BFSI GCC ecosystem for FY 2025-26 reveals that investment banking GCCs are decisively the highest payers across most tech and data roles. Sophisticated functions—data science, full-stack, big data engineering—see the largest premiums. [1][6]
Although entry-level salaries in investment banking are already elevated, the divergence becomes more pronounced at senior levels. For example, a full-stack developer’s compensation in investment banking can reach ₹47.5 lakh, substantially ahead both in absolute and growth rate terms versus peers in retail banking, insurance, and financial services. [1][6]
Drivers of this disparity include the increasing strategic importance of technology: firms in investment banking GCCs are undergoing digital transformation, focusing on regulatory compliance, risk, automation, and data-driven decision-making. These priorities elevate the valuation of specialised, scarce technical skills. [7][6]
Insurance and financial services sectors are reacting with sharper salary escalation at senior levels, particularly as they adopt technologies like fraud analytics, predictive underwriting, and AI. However, their base and mid-tier salaries lag behind. Retail banking retains more structured bands and offers steadier progression but less upside. [1][3][6]
Strategically, this suggests that professionals targeting rapid compensation growth should seek roles in investment banking GCCs, especially in high-impact tech/data functions. Companies outside investment banking may need to sharpen their value proposition for talent retention, possibly through equity, career pathing, and specialisation. Open questions include: how sustainable are these salary premiums under macro-economic/headwinds; whether the gap compresses or widens over the next 2–3 years; and how demand for AI, cloud, cybersecurity evolves relative to regulatory and investment cycles.
Supporting Notes
- The study covers ≈ 50,000 tech/data professionals across investment banking, retail/commercial banking, financial services, and insurance GCCs. [6][3]
- Data scientists in investment banking earn ₹22.1-46.9 lakh; in retail banking ₹19.9-44.5 lakh; in insurance ₹18.4-44.3 lakh. [1][6]
- Full-stack developers in investment banking earn ₹20.7 lakh (junior) up to ₹47.5 lakh (senior). [1][6]
- Roles like Scrum Master and Cybersecurity Specialist start with lower pay but show steep salary acceleration at senior levels, especially in sectors increasing investment in digital security. [1][7]
- Insurance GCCs show sharper pay spikes at senior levels due to adoption of automation, predictive analytics, fraud detection technologies. [6][1]
- Retail and commercial banking offer more balanced, consistent salary growth but with lower top-end compensation compared to investment banking. [3][1]
Sources
- [1] www.businesstoday.in (Business Today) — 8 December 2025
- [3] hr.economictimes.indiatimes.com (Economics Times (HR)) — 8 December 2025
- [6] careernet.in (Careernet) — 18 November 2025
- [7] www.ndtvprofit.com (NDTV Profit) — 8 December 2025