Mumbai, 13th September 2024: In a strategic move to bolster its presence in India, Microsoft has acquired a land parcel in Pune’s Hinjewadi for Rs. 453 crore, as reported by Square Yards. Hinjewadi, one of India’s most prominent IT hubs, continues to attract major investments from global tech players, with this being Microsoft’s second major purchase in the area in just over a month. In August, the company had secured another 66,415 square metre (16.4 acre) land parcel worth approx. Rs. 520 crore in the same locality.
Anand Moorthy, Co-founder and CBO, Capital Market & Services, Square Yards said, “India is the most exciting market for tech expansion right now, having a strong talent pool across the country and a maturing infrastructure for global tech giants. Demonstrating this trend, our data intelligence research on registered land transactions indicates that more and more tech-oriented global companies are expanding their presence in India for new office spaces, development centres, and data centres. India is one of the only countries to have resources from creation to consumption, which makes it the most lucrative geography to invest in. What also comes out of these capital investments in land and buildings by tech giants is the confidence in the appreciation of real estate, unlike in other countries.
Moreover, the government’s push to digitize land records is streamlining land acquisition processes and speeding up approvals, thus boosting global confidence in India. Once seen as a challenging market due to transparency issues, India is now becoming a prime destination for international firms to set up operations through long-term capital commitments.”
According to Square Yards, the recent land deal in Pune, registered in September 2024, involved the purchase of 66,450 square meters (approximately 16.4 acres) from Viva Highways Limited. The transaction which registered under its Indian arm Microsoft Corporation (India) Private Limited incurred a stamp duty of Rs. 27.18 crore along with a registration fee of Rs. 30,000.
Microsoft has been making big strides in India’s commercial real estate, with key deals including the purchase of 25 acres in Pimpri-Chinchwad for Rs. 328 crore in 2022, and 48 acres in Hyderabad earlier this year for Rs. 267 crore. These acquisitions were part of the company's broader strategy to strengthen its data center operations, with major facilities already set up in Pune, Mumbai, and Chennai.
Microsoft, which employs over 23,000 people in India across cities like Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Pune, is also focusing on talent development. Earlier this year, it launched its ADVANTA(I)GE INDIA initiative, which aims to train 2 million people in AI and digital skills by 2025, as part of its commitment to fostering a skilled and future-ready workforce in India.
About Square Yards
Square Yards is India's largest Integrated real estate marketplace, with category leadership presence across multiple touchpoints of consumer home ownership journey. With Urbanisation and rising disposable incomes as the core theme, Square Yards, with 7mn+ monthly traffic and ~USD 3bn+ GTV, is the largest and asset-light proxy play to the growing residential demand story of India. One of the few Indian start-ups to taste global success with a presence in 100+ cities across 9 countries, Square Yards is at the forefront of tech adoption in the sector, with multiple patents across VR/AI domains.
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