Even as there are fears of global economic downturn, Switzerland headquartered wealth management firm, UBS, believes India’s strong talent and the Digital India initiative will hold it in good stead. There is obviously a wave of fear spooking the markets and the workforce alike, Dr Doom (Turkish-American economist Nouriel Roubini) has already forecast that it’s going to be a ‘long, ugly’ recession. He’s the same economist who had correctly predicted the 2008 global financial crisis. It’s not a surprise that tech companies across the world have started cutting back, not just on hiring, but cutting their current workforce via mass layoffs. UBS though continues to strategically hire and India is a key location for the firm “We continue to selectively hire, and we’re committed to building a strong team in India,” says UBS’s Matthias Schacke, Country Head and Chief Digital and Information Officer for India.

India, a key strategic location

UBS India has grown from zero to more than 7000 in the last seven years and the digital talent makes up almost 50 percent of its headcount in the country. India is, in fact, one of the largest locations for digital talent at UBS – with 25% of its overall digital talent based in the country. According to Matthias, UBS is on track to build the firm’s largest community of data scientists in India over the next two to three years.. As a talent feeder, UBS India will play a key role in the firm digitalization journey.

“Home to a workforce of more than 5 million techies, thanks to the vast network of universities offering technology related curriculum and a young and digitally native population, India is the hotspot for digital capabilities with the largest number of English-speaking, STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) graduates. In fact, it’s projected that India will add almost 85,000 digitally skilled graduates every year for the next five years,” Matthias had recently shared in a LinkedIn post. This makes India a location of choice for many global organisations – just like UBS – to tap into the highly skilled talent pool, he added.

Betting big on India

Some of the reasons UBS cites for its bullishness on India are, “a stable political environment, supportive economic policies, focus on growth in the IT/ITeS industry, and a deep talent pool.”

UBS also sees great potential in India’s startup ecosystem and are keen to contribute to its growth.

“UBS is keen on tapping into the tech and fintech space globally and with UBS Next, the firm’s venture and innovation unit, invests in startups that could help achieve UBS’s business goals and deliver the latest technologies,” shares Matthias. India is booming in the startups and fintech ecosystem which means that “innovation will continue along with supportive policies”. He firmly believes Indian startups have an opportunity to partner with multiple global businesses to make a “bigger impact” and UBS India will explore these opportunities to support the firm in unlocking innovation and reimagine the way we do business