Morgan Stanley may sell Indian back operations: report

Morgan Stanley, the global financial services provider that recently had to be bailed out by the US government, may sell its back-offices in India, either wholly or partially, according to a media report. Its Indian units, based mainly in Mumbai and partly in Pune, handle much of its software work.

According to report in The Economic Times that fails to name sources but has been widely picked up by the media, the potential value of the transaction for Morgan Stanley's entire Indian back-office operations could be $150-200 million.

Likely buyers include several large Indian IT firms, such as Infosys Technologies and Wipro, some of which already do development work for Morgan Stanley.

According to the report, the bank is exploring all options, including a part or full sale of its back-office unit.