Bengaluru: India’s listed office real estate investment trusts (Reits) are building artificial intelligence-resilient, GCC-driven tenant portfolios as they focus on expansion through acquiring premium assets and increasing occupancy in FY27.
Reits have emerged from a strong year with good leasing and increased demand from global capability centres (GCCs). The publicly listed office Reits in the country—Embassy Office Parks REIT, Mindspace Business Parks REIT, Brookfield India Real Estate Trust (Biret) and Knowledge Realty Trust (KRT)—have seen their net operating income, occupancy levels and distribution grow in FY26.
Bagmane Prime Office REIT was the fifth and latest to list in May. Its initial public offering was subscribed almost 25 times, attracting the highest number of investor applications ever for a Reit IPO in the country.
“We have an AI-resilient portfolio, with a strong GCC client base that is not affected by IT (information technology). In FY27, we are looking at higher occupancy, which also means a significant amount of leasing,” Shirish Godbole, chief executive officer of KRT, which is backed by real estate company Sattva Group and asset manager Blackstone, told Mint.
Godbole expects healthy growth in revenue, net operating income and distribution, along with a strong acquisition pipeline of sponsor assets as well as third-party buyout opportunities.
Reits pool income-generating real estate assets such as office parks and shopping malls to help investors earn a share of the income produced without purchasing the properties. Distribution refers to the payments made to a Reit’s shareholders each year.
Reit executives said that amid the layoff buzz by IT companies and the AI boom, GCCs have more than compensated in terms of demand and leasing of premium office space.
Flight to quality
“The AI narrative has been running for the last three years. In that period, office demand has grown. GCCs, technology, consulting, BFSI clients, the biggest adopters of AI, are all hiring at scale,” said Ramesh Nair, CEO and managing director, Mindspace REIT. “There is no evidence of mass vacancy increase. The very AI companies blamed for killing offices are taking new office spaces. I believe AI will accelerate the flight to quality. Companies will seek upgraded spaces, stronger amenities, better sustainability credentials.”
Brookfield India REIT, which acquired Ecoworld, a 48 acre business park in Bengaluru’s Bellandur area last year in one of the largest office park acquisitions, is eyeing further growth and expansion. This year, it raised about ₹2,600 crore through an institutional placement of units, which will largely be used as growth capital.
The Biret management said on its recent post-earnings analyst call that the company has about ₹5,000 crore that could be used for potential acquisitions.
However, global headwinds and travel disruptions have delayed some transactions. With uncertainty due to the West Asia war, most Reits expect some delay in decision-making in leasing even as they affirm that GCC tenants still find India lucrative.
“A 200,000 square foot GCC client in Hyderabad who we are negotiating with for ₹120 rental had put their requirement on hold because of the war. We managed to lease the same space at ₹130 to another GCC in 15 days,” Mindspace's management said on an analyst call.
The turmoil will have a mid- to long-term impact on leasing decisions. Some delays can happen, but neither will leasing demand be lost nor will any GCC decide not to come to India, Reit executives said.
GCC footprint
India's commercial office sector looks good. A recent JLL India report stated that the office market posted a quarterly record 21.5 million sq ft of gross leasing in the January-March period of 2026, up 10.2% year-on-year. GCCs expanded their footprint by 43% year-on-year to 10 million sq ft, commanding 45% of the total leasing activity.
Embassy REIT, the country's first listed office trust, leased 6.4 million sq ft in FY26 across 86 deals, including 4 million sq ft in new leasing and the rest in renewals and pre-leases.
“GCCs contributed to around 60% of our total leasing, with the demand primarily driven by technology, healthcare and BFSI sectors. With seven new GCC entrants this year, we now have 102 GCCs in our occupier roster of 280 corporates,” Embassy REIT chief executive Amit Shetty said. “Amidst the ongoing geopolitical turmoil and the debates on AI disruption, the Indian office absorption numbers continue to speak for themselves.”
As of Q3 FY26, the gross assets under management of the Indian Reit market stood at over ₹2.5 trillion. This reflects the strong growth path of the Indian Reit sector and its increasing contribution to the country’s financial ecosystem, according to the Indian Reit Association.