Iran row puts focus on India outsourcing

Mumbai: The New York banking regulator’s accusation that Standard Chartered Plc hid $250 billion in transactions tied to Iran may bring fresh scrutiny on the outsourcing of sensitive functions by global financial institutions, especially to India. As part of its report, the regulator said the bank’s failures included “outsourcing of the entire Office of Foreign Assets Control compliance process for the New York branch to Chennai, India, with no evidence of any oversight or communication between the Chennai and the New York offices”. Scope International, StanChart’s back office outsourcing centre, is based in Chennai and employs more than 8,500 people.