FM will set up the largest innovation and client centre in Bengaluru

FM, one of the world’s largest commercial property insurers, will set up its largest innovation and client centre in Bengaluru spread around 100,000 sq. ft.

The centre will be located inside Manyata Tech Park.

“After evaluating multiple cities across Asia, FM selected Bengaluru due to its rich engineering talent pool, AI and startup ecosystem, and proximity to leading research institutions such as IISc, along with the city’s airport connectivity, business infrastructure, and availability of strategic partners as key factors,” said Srini Krishnamurthy, who has been appointed Senior Vice President, FM India.

Krishnamurthy will report to COO Randy Hodge and lead the firm’s multi-year India strategy.

Unlike traditional insurers, FM is known globally for its focus on loss prevention through scientific research, engineering models, and infrastructure resilience.

Present in 49 countries with revenue exceeding $11 billion, the company stands apart for investing heavily in engineering-backed risk mitigation rather than claims processing.

FM has maintained a presence in India since 2003, but its footprint was modest until now.

This major investment signals the company’s growing confidence in India’s economic trajectory, particularly in sectors like manufacturing, data centres, logistics, telecom, and pharmaceuticals, where uptime and operational continuity are increasingly mission-critical.

The new Bengaluru office will house risk consultants, data scientists, engineers, and software developers.

As part of its broader India expansion, FM also plans to open a sales office in Mumbai later this year. The office will bring the company closer to key clients and decision-makers in India’s financial capital, where several large enterprises in energy, finance, and infrastructure are already FM’s global clients.

“Bengaluru provides the ideal environment to build a long-term capability hub for the region. We see it becoming a centre of excellence not just for India, but for Asia-Pacific. It will also help drive our science-based solutions and serve as a key enabler of client risk resilience,” said Krishnamurthy.

According to Colliers, India’s office market has started 2025 on a high note, with gross office leasing across the top seven cities reaching 15.9 million square feet in the first quarter. This represents a 15% year-on-year (y-o-y) increase, driven by strong demand for Grade A office spaces.

Some of the major leasing deals during the quarter includes Applied Materials leasing 835,000 sq ft in ITPL, Whitefield (Bengaluru), Tata Consultancy Services taking up 690,000 sq ft in Ozone Tech Park, OMR (Chennai), JP Morgan Chase & Co. leasing 559,700 sq ft in Embassy Tech Village, ORR (Bengaluru), Walmart securing 465,400 sq ft in CapitaLand, Radial Road (Chennai), Intuit leasing 456,700 sq ft in Embassy Tech Village, ORR (Bengaluru), the report mentioned.

Going ahead as India continues to attract global corporations and expand its domestic businesses, leasing activity is expected to remain strong throughout 2025, making it another promising year for the country’s commercial real estate sector.