Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Wipro and Tech Mahindra, among others, lost maximum employees in FY24….reports Asian Lite News
Amid the muted revenue growth in the Indian IT services sector due to global macroeconomic headwinds, leading IT companies saw a drop of nearly 70,000 employees in the last fiscal year (FY24).
Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Wipro and Tech Mahindra, among others, lost maximum employees in FY24.
While Infosys saw its employee headcount drop by 25,994, the headcount at TCS went down by 13,249, in FY24.
IT bellwether Wipro saw its employee strength fall by 6,180 in the fourth quarter (Q4) of FY24.
When it comes to the full year, the IT services major witnessed its headcount decline by 24,516.
Tech Mahindra had a total headcount of 145,455 in FY24, down 795 (on-quarter) and 6,945 (full year).
Among the leading IT services companies, HCLTech was an exception which had a total headcount of 227,481 in the last fiscal year, with a net addition of 1,537 employees.
According to a latest Crisil Ratings report, the IT services sector in the country is likely to see a second successive year of muted revenue growth, at 5-7 per cent in FY25.
As revenue growth remained subdued, IT service companies pulled back on the addition of fresh talent, resulting in headcount reductions by 4 per cent (on-year) in December 2023.
Aditya Jhaver, Director, CRISIL Ratings, said that the slowdown in technology spending will continue this fiscal year, weighing on the revenue growth of IT service providers.
“Revenue from BFSI and retail segments will continue to be a drag with subdued growth of 4-5 per cent while manufacturing and healthcare will grow at a healthy 9-10 per cent,” he noted.
Liberty Global is in the converged broadband, video and mobile communications services….reports Asian Lite News
Software major Infosys Ltd on Tuesday said it has entered a five-year contract worth about 1.5 billion euros with the UK-based Liberty Global plc.
In a regulatory filing, Infosys said the contract has an option to extend to eight years and when extended the total order value will be 2.3 billion euros.
The collaboration allows Liberty Global to realise run-rate savings in excess of 100 million euros per annum, inclusive of other savings and technology investments, Infosys said.
Liberty Global is in the converged broadband, video and mobile communications services.
In addition, Liberty Global will license its Horizon entertainment and connectivity platforms to Infosys so the digital services provider can offer services to new operators and new markets outside the Liberty Global family.
Liberty Global will continue to control product roadmaps and retain all intellectual property for the Horizon entertainment and connectivity platforms.
The expanded collaboration will additionally create career opportunities for more than 400 Liberty Global employees joining Infosys.
Under the terms of the business arrangements, senior executives and technology teams from Liberty Global’s Product, Technology Development Service Delivery Group, Network & Shared Operations and Security Groups will transition to Infosys.
They will also play an important role in shaping the future of Infosys’ communications, media and entertainment business and add significantly to its engineering capabilities, the Indian company said.
Senior management-level employees, whose hike is scheduled to come in the month of July, are also clueless about the company’s plans…reports Asian Lite News
Tech major Infosys has deferred pay hikes for employees, according to sources in the company.
Employees in ranks below the management level usually receive their hikes from the month of April.
The sources said that the employees are hoping that they will get a good news from the company before or on the day Infosys announces its first quarter results of the financial year 2023-2024 on July 20.
So far, the employees have not received any intimation from the management for their salary hikes which used to come in the first quarter in the June, the sources claimed.
Senior management-level employees, whose hike is scheduled to come in the month of July, are also clueless about the company’s plans.
The development is seen as continuation of a gloomy scenario in the global IT sector.
Infosys had denied pay hikes during Covid pandemic in 2020 for cash conservation and released hikes in January 2021.
The tech major will commemorate the completion of 40 years of the company on December 14.
Infosys Chairman and Co-founder Nandan Nilekani had made his intentions of handing over the reins of tech giant to a non-founder for the first time ever since the company began its operations on the occasion.
A spokesperson for Murty said: “Akshata Murty pays UK tax as well as relevant foreign tax on all her worldwide income.”…reports Asian Lite News
The prime minister’s wife, Akshata Murty, will receive nearly £6.7mn in dividend payments from her shares in the technology company Infosys this summer.
India’s second biggest IT company, co-founded by Rishi Sunak’s father in law, revealed the latest dividend for shareholders in annual results on Thursday.
The payment, which is due to be distributed in July, will bring Murty’s earnings from Infosys to £13m for this financial year. The company announced a first dividend after its financial results in October, of which Murty’s share was an estimated £6.25m.
It earlier emerged that Murty, who has invested in a string of small businesses in the UK, had used non-domicile status to save money on her tax bill in April last year, while her husband was chancellor and the couple were living in Downing Street.
Responding to public criticism she said she would no longer claim the status on a remittance basis, which lets non-doms play a flat fee of £30,000 a year in exchange for shielding overseas earning from British tax. Under this arrangement only money brought in or “remitted” to the UK is taxed here.
A spokesperson for Murty said: “Akshata Murty pays UK tax as well as relevant foreign tax on all her worldwide income.”
While she has promised to pay UK tax on all her income, Murty retains non-dom status. Her family could therefore be exempt from inheritance tax on any assets she holds abroad in the event of her death.
When she issued a statement in April 2022, Murty said she would, from then on “pay UK tax on an arising basis” on all her “worldwide income, including dividends and capital gains, wherever in the world that income arises”.
She said: “I do this because I want to, not because the rules require me to. These new arrangements will begin immediately and will also be applied to the tax year just finished.”
It is unclear whether she receives the dividend payment directly from Infosys and therefore whether this would be realised as income, and taxed directly in the UK.
A spokesperson for Murty did not respond to a question about whether she used any offshore trusts to manage her finances.
Murty has used a tax haven for other business interests. In 2020 the Guardian revealed that she held shares in a restaurants business that funnelled investments through a letterbox company in the tax haven of Mauritius, in a structure that could allow its backers to avoid taxes in India.
Infosys shares fell in early trading on Thursday, after it revealed that its forecast sales would be lower than expected by analysts.
In January Infosys annual report also revealed that it was in dispute with HMRC over a corporation tax bill of around £20m. The company said it had filed an appeal against a tax assessment in the UK.
Neither Murty nor her father have a management role at Infosys.
It was also last year that the couple faced backlash after it emerged that Murty held non-domicile status in the UK and hadn’t been paying tax on overseas earnings…reports Asian Lite News
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s wife Akshata Murty experienced a paper loss of approximately £49 million after shares in Infosys Ltd, the Indian software giant co-founded by her father, Narayana Murthy, dropped 9.4 per cent on Monday.
Infosys saw its biggest intraday percentage drop since October 2019, and dragged other IT stocks, with the Nifty IT index dropping as much as 7.6 per cent.
After opening with a gap-down, Infosys shares slipped 12 per cent in intraday trade. The stock recovered towards the end of the session and closed at £12 forming a hammer candlestick pattern on daily charts. The last time Infosys shares hit a lower circuit was on March 23, 2020.
According to a Bloomberg report, Murty’s stake in Infosys is still more than $450 million. Akshata Murty owns a 0.95 per cent stake in Infosys. Sunak has often been criticised for his wife’s ‘non-domicile’ status in the UK and the opposition has often targeted him citing that Murty did not declare her earnings from Infosys dividend for tax purposes in the UK.
While Rishi Sunak’s office declined to comment, Murty’s wealth has been a recurring theme in her husband’s political career. In 2022, Murty earned £12.45 million in dividend income from her shares in Infosys. It was also last year that the couple faced backlash after it emerged that Murty held non-domicile status in the UK and hadn’t been paying tax on overseas earnings.
At that time, her spokesperson had stated that as a citizen of India, she was unable to hold citizenship of another country and that “she has always and will continue to pay UK taxes on all her UK income.”
Monday’s volatility in Infosys share may be viewed on the backdrop of Infosys Q4 results which were announced last week. The company posted weaker-than-expected results and analysts believe that Monday’s reaction was a knee-jerk response to Infosys Q4 results in which the company reported a revenue of £ 3.68 million, down 2.3 per cent on a quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) basis.
The announcement comes on the heels of Mohit Joshi, the President of tech giant Infosys putting in his papers….reports Asian Lite News
The Board of Tech Mahindra, a leading provider of digital transformation, consulting and business re-engineering services and solutions, on Saturday announced Mohit Joshi as the MD and CEO designate of Tech Mahindra.
The announcement comes on the heels of Mohit Joshi, the President of tech giant Infosys putting in his papers.
Infosys, in its official communication to stock exchange stated, that Joshi will be on leave and his last date with the company would be on June 9.
Joshi will take over as Tech Mahindra MD and CEO when incumbent CP Gurnani retires on December 19, 2023. He will join Tech Mahindra well before that date to allow for sufficient transition time.
Commenting on his appointment, Joshi said, “Tech Mahindra’s growth journey has been remarkable. I am delighted to be joining the Tech Mahindra family and look forward to working closely with all the associates, partners, and customers to achieve new milestones, make a positive difference and #Risetogether.”
T. N. Manoharan, Chairperson of the Tech Mahindra NRC said, “Mohit’s appointment is the successful culmination of a rigorous selection process during which the NRC evaluated a number of internal and external candidates. Mohit’s experience with digital transformation, new technologies and large deals will complement Tech Mahindra’s strategies and continue to build on the strong growth momentum demonstrated by the company”.
Mohit Joshi has over two decades of experience in the Enterprise technology software and consulting space and has worked with the largest corporations in the world in driving digital transformation and building thriving businesses.
Sources in Infosys claimed that his absence will create a vacuum in the company. Joshi had joined Infosys in 2000 and worked with the firm in many capacities.
He was playing an important role at Infosys in connection with financial services, healthcare and life sciences businesses. Infosys management tried its best to retain him but the efforts could not materialise.
Joshi handled Infosys’s internal technology and applications portfolio. He led a financial services business in Europe. In 2007, he was appointed as CEO of Infosys Mexico and he played a role in setting up the first subsidiary in Latin America.
At Infosys, he was Head of the Global Financial Services and Healthcare and the Software businesses, which included Finacle (the banking platform) and the AI / Automation portfolio.
Joshi also led Sales Operations and Transformation for Infosys and executive responsibility for all large deals across the company. He was also responsible for the company’s internal CIO function and the Infosys Knowledge Institute.
He has been a Non-Executive Director at Aviva Plc since 2020 and is a member of its Risk & Governance and Nomination committees.
In 2014, Mohit Joshi joined the prestigious Young Global Leader program at the World Economic Forum, Davos and is also a member of Young Presidents Organization (YPO). Previously, Mohit has also held the office of the Vice Chair of the Economic Growth Board of the CBI (Confederation of British Industry).
Prior to joining Infosys in 2000, Mohit worked with ABN AMRO and ANZ Grindlays in their Corporate and Investment bank. Mohit has lived and worked in Asia, America and Europe and currently lives with his wife and two daughters in London.
Infosys founder Narayana Murthy, however, is yet to react to the developments…reports Asian Lite News
The staff at the office of Bengaluru-based tech giant Infosys on Monday cheered the news of Indian-origin British Conservative politician Rishi Sunak making it to the post of UK Prime Minister, terming the development “double Diwali dhamaka”.
There was a palpable enthusiasm among the Infosys employees as many sat glued to television screens to stay updated about the political events unfolding in London.
A collective cheer rang out among a group of young IT professionals when it became clear that Sunak had the field all to himself after his sole contestant Penny Mordaunt withdrew.
“It is a double Diwali dhamaka for us. We sat before the television just like we were glued to watch the nail-biting cricket match between India and Pakistan. The Diwali celebration started on Sunday itself. The election of Rishi Sunak, on the day of festival, made us extremely happy and proud,” Harsha Kumar, a senior software engineer said.
“It is a matter of honour. It showcases our prowess and it is a proud moment for the whole country,” said Chandrashekar Sundar, another software professional.
“It’s an emotional connect for me,” said Rahul, a software engineer.
Infosys founder Narayana Murthy, however, is yet to react to the developments.
Sunak had married Murthy’s daughter – Akshata, in 2009.
Sources in Infosys stated that the company and as well as the family is closely watching the developments and looking forward to the formal swearing in ceremony.
Infosys’ Q4 sequential growth was 1.2 per cent in constant currency with operating margin of 21.5 per cent. TCV of large deal wins was $2.3 billion in Q4…reports Asian Lite News
Infosys, India’s leading IT services provider, on Wednesday reported a net profit of 12 per cent to Rs 5,686 crore for the quarter ended March 31.
An official communication stated on Wednesday that the growth was broad-based, supported by continued momentum in large deal wins with a TCV of $9.5 billion.
Infosys had reported a profit of Rs 5,076 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.
The company delivered $16.3 billion in revenues with the highest annual growth in the last decade of 19.7 per cent in constant currency with a robust operating margin of 23 per cent.
Its EPS grew by 15.2 per cent in rupee terms, while FCF crossed $3 billion for the year.
Infosys’ Q4 sequential growth was 1.2 per cent in constant currency with operating margin of 21.5 per cent. TCV of large deal wins was $2.3 billion in Q4.
“Infosys delivered the highest annual growth in a decade with broad-based performance driven by deeply differentiated digital and Infosys Cobalt led cloud capabilities, powered by the ‘One Infosys’ approach. We continue to gain market share as a result of sustained clients’ confidence in our ability to successfully navigate their digital journeys,” said Salil Parekh, CEO and MD, Infosys.
“With the acceleration of digital disruptions across industries, we see immense potential to engage and partner with clients as they transform, adapt and thrive. We will scale talent globally, invest in employees and accelerate innovation and digital,” he added.
“In a year marked by intense supply-side challenges, Infosys delivered strong financial performance – EPS growth of 15.2 per cent, free cash flows surpassing $3 billion and return on equity of 29.1 per cent, reflecting the company’s success, driven by client-centricity and rich capabilities. The Board has proposed a final dividend of Rs 16 per share, taking the total dividend for FY22 to Rs 31 per share, an increase of 14.8 per cent over prior year,” said Nilanjan Roy, CFO, Infosys.
“With a robust demand environment ahead, we envisage making appropriate long-term investments in capability building across sales, delivery and innovation. However, we plan to neutralise some of the impact through aggressive cost optimisation programmes and value-led pricing driven by service and brand differentiation. This, along with post-pandemic normalisation of expenses, is reflected in the margin guidance,” he added.
The cost of living issue is fuelling protests and it may snowball into in to another major crisis for Mr Johnson. It may end up like 1990’s poll tax crisis which toppled the Thatcher government … writes Kaliph Anaz
No10 denies newspaper reports that Prime Minister’s office was behind the leaks to corner Chancellor Rishi Sunak over his wife’s tax arrangements.
Political pundits are suspecting the role of No10 because the drop in popularity of the chancellor will help the prime minister consolidate his position in the party as the sole reliable pair of hands. The party-gate fines and the forthcoming local election results will bring more damage to the party. The other leading opponent Foreign Secretary Liz Truss is comparatively “featherweight.”
The cost of living issue is fuelling protest and it may snowball into another major crisis for Mr Johnson. It may end up like the 1990’s poll tax crisis which toppled the Thatcher government.
Meanwhile, Sunak blamed Labour for the “awful” smears. The Chancellor told The Sun newspaper that his spouse Akshata Murthy had done nothing wrong in choosing a financial arrangement that means she is not legally obliged to pay tax in Britain on foreign income.
Mr Sunak said Ms Murthy was entitled to use the “non-dom” arrangement as she is an Indian citizen and plans to move back to her home country to care for her parents. The fashion-designer daughter of a billionaire, she married the Chancellor in 2009 before he became an MP. She is reported to hold a 0.91% stake in Infosys, an IT business founded by her father Narayan Murthy.
The Chancellor said it was “unpleasant” to read attacks on his wife “especially when she hasn’t done anything wrong”.
“She hasn’t broken any rules. She’s followed the letter of the law,” Mr Sunak told The Sun.
The Chancellor said his partner “pays full UK tax on every penny that she earns here in the same way that she pays full international tax on every penny that she earns internationally”.
In another development, Labour’s Emily Thornberry suggested that Mr Sunak may have broken the ministerial code over his wife’s tax arrangements.
Ms Murthy was accused of taking taxpayers money through the furlough scheme introduced by her husband.
“So she can be a non-dom and avoid paying UK taxes,” said Marina Purkiss, a London-based political commentator. “But she can also be eligible to claim up to £100k of UK tax-payer cash for her UK-based business. How wonderfully convenient of our tax laws…”
“We’re not “attacking his wife,” she added. “We’re attacking a system and its exploiters, that allow grossly conflicted politicians to shape laws that enrich them and their ilk while impoverishing the rest of us.”
Liberal Democrats called on the Chancellor to legislate to close a loophole allowing Ministers’ spouses to be non-doms.
The Liberal Democrats have said that Mr Sunak must do the right thing and ban Government members’ partners from claiming non-domicile status.
Currently, Ministers are not allowed to hold non-dom tax status, but this rule does not apply to their immediate family. The Liberal Democrats have called on the Government to close this loophole, warning it “leaves the door open for government ministers to exploit non-dom arrangements.”
‘Non-dom’ status is granted to those whose permanent home, or domicile, is outside of the UK. While they must pay UK tax on UK earnings, they do not need to pay normal UK tax on foreign income or gains. Instead, they are only liable for an annual charge known as a “remittance charge” if they have lived here for several years. The calls come after it was revealed that the Chancellor’s wife does not have to pay UK income tax on income made abroad. This was discovered on the same day national insurance contributions increased by 1.25%, in broken Conservative promise that has hiked taxes for families struggling with the cost of living crisis.
Lib Dem Treasury Spokesperson Christine Jardine
Lib Dem Treasury Spokesperson Christine Jardine has also called on the Chancellor to disclose where his wife is domiciled for tax purposes, in order to establish whether she has avoided paying tax via a tax haven. The MP has said that failure to act upon this in a timely manner will raise questions around the Chancellor’s judgement and whether he can act in a way that does not suit “his own personal and selfish interests”.
“Government ministers have a duty to do what’s morally right. When they change peoples’ taxes, they and their immediate families should play by the same rules as everybody else,” said Liberal Democrat Treasury Spokesperson Christine Jardine MP.
“The Chancellor’s household should be no different to the millions of UK households who now face the highest tax burden in decades. It’s just nonsensical that someone can be domiciled in a different country to the person they live with.
“Rishi Sunak must put what’s right above his own personal and selfish interests. He must take immediate action to close this loophole which leaves the door open for government ministers to exploit non-dom arrangements. And he must come clean on his family’s tax affairs while he’s at it. It would be a scandal if his household were to have benefitted from overseas tax havens.”
New rules should include reliefs for cases where Ministers’ partners are nationals of countries that don’t have a double taxation agreement with the UK and have particularly inflexible tax rules.
Akshata Murthy is the daughter of Narayana Murthy, the billionaire co-founder of IT services company Infosys, and she owns around 0.93% of the company, reports Asian Lite News
The wife of British finance minister Rishi Sunak is treated as non-domiciled for UK tax purposes but pays taxes in Britain on all her UK income, her spokeswoman said on Wednesday.
Akshata Murthy is the daughter of Narayana Murthy, the billionaire co-founder of IT services company Infosys, and she owns around 0.93% of the company. The tax status means she would not pay taxes in Britain on dividends from the Indian business.
The news, which featured prominently in Britain’s newspapers on Thursday, comes as the government is putting up taxes in for millions of people. Tulip Siddiq, a lawmaker and Treasury spokeswoman in the opposition Labour Party, said Sunak should say whether he had benefited from his wife’s tax status.
Murthy’s spokeswoman said as a citizen of India, Murthy was treated under British law as non-domiciled for UK tax purposes because India does not allow its citizens to hold the citizenship of another country simultaneously.
Sunak, who became finance minister in February 2020 just as the country entered the COVID-19 pandemic, is now facing some of the toughest economic conditions in decades, with inflation soaring and living standards set to drop to levels last seen in the 1950s.
To help fund the rebuilding of the country’s national health service and its public finances, he has increased the tax take to the highest level since the 1940s.
“Akshata Murty is a citizen of India, the country of her birth and parent’s home,” the spokeswoman said in a statement. “India does not allow its citizens to hold the citizenship of another country simultaneously.
“She has always and will continue to pay UK taxes on all her UK income.” A person familiar with the situation said Sunak had declared his wife’s status to the government when he became a minister and the Treasury department was also informed. The person who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter added that Murthy pays foreign taxes on her foreign income
