The Times of India (ToI) has suggested that Capgemini is in talks to acquire BPO firm IGATE, in a deal that would likely rank amongst the largest acquisitions in the IT services market.

Capgemini has thus far refused to comment on the speculation, but multiple sources have informed the Indian paper that there is a high likelihood that the deal will go through. HP’s $13.9 billion acquisition of EDS in 2008 remains the biggest deal to date.

The ToI speculates that the acquisition will strengthen the Paris-based firm’s share in the North American market - almost 70 per cent of IGATE’s revenues are drawn from the USA, the largest outsourcing market globally. In comparison, only 20 per cent of Capgemini’s revenues come from the country.

"Capgemini has been trying to grow presence in tier II spoke-centres in India to price competitively, but hasn't gained the level of scale offshore as its primary competition. It has stated that it wants to grow offshore (not just nearshore), so IGATE's footprint will definitely help” said Phil Fersht, CEO of HFS Research.

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