India’s prime IT corporations are grappling with a protracted interval of deal delays and slower ramp-ups as world shoppers proceed to tighten budgets and defer giant transformation tasks.
Whereas no main undertaking cancellations have been reported, prime executives from TCS, Infosys, Wipro, HCLTech, Tech Mahindra, Persistent Techniques, and others have acknowledged that restoration could not absolutely materialise till late FY26—if in any respect.
Tariff-driven uncertainties and tighter scrutiny of discretionary spending are forcing the deal-making setting to stay cautious. Even with a powerful pipeline, the execution is being staggered, and development trajectories have shifted from acceleration to safety.
At TCS, CEO Okay Krithivasan was unequivocal in This autumn FY25, stating that whereas shoppers are holding again on new discretionary investments, “we now have not seen any giant cancellations”. As a substitute, shoppers are delaying the kick-off of recent initiatives and taking longer to approve spending, notably for digital transformation.
Nonetheless, TCS stays comparatively optimistic. The corporate reported an all-time excessive order e book of $39.4 billion and expects FY26 to ship higher revenues than FY25.
Krithivasan famous that there’s a robust base of dedicated offers and the agency is specializing in mining present accounts and strengthening consumer relationships to climate the slowdown.
Furthering this, Infosys CEO Salil Parekh additionally dominated out any cancellations, however flagged delays in ramp-ups for not too long ago received offers. Whereas avoiding direct reference to cancellations, Parekh, within the This autumn FY25 earnings name, acknowledged a “present unsure setting” and mentioned shoppers are specializing in consolidation and price pressures, he mentioned.
The corporate has given a cautious income development steerage of 0–3% for FY26, reflecting the conservative stance many consumers are taking.
Parekh emphasised that price takeout and consolidation stay a dominant theme in consumer conversations. Shoppers wish to simplify operations and scale back prices, and he mentioned the brand new spend is being evaluated underneath that lens.
Regardless of the deal wins introduced in FY24, Infosys is treading rigorously into FY26, and Parekh admitted that visibility into the second half of the yr stays murky.
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Packages Are ‘Paused’, Not Scrapped
Amongst tier-1 IT corporations, Wipro has been essentially the most vocal about consumer warning. CEO Srini Pallia, who took over its management in April 2024, identified that “giant transformation applications are being paused, delayed, or rescheduled.”
One in all Wipro’s prime shoppers deferred a key transformation initiative, impacting quarterly numbers. Nonetheless, Pallia was clear that these usually are not cancellations, however fairly a mirrored image of client-side uncertainty.
Throughout the This autumn FY25 name, Pallia mentioned that shoppers are ready to see how macro elements, together with tariffs and inflation, play out earlier than committing to large-scale applications.
Wipro’s Q1 FY26 steerage displays a sequential income decline, and the corporate signalled that development within the close to time period can be subdued. The influence is extra seen within the US and European markets, the place price range approvals have slowed considerably.
HCLTech, whereas dealing with the identical world headwinds, has to date managed to defend itself higher. CEO C Vijayakumar mentioned the corporate “hasn’t seen any materials influence but” from world uncertainty or the current US tariff bulletins.
Nonetheless, he acknowledged that sectors like shopper items and manufacturing could possibly be affected if situations worsen. HCLTech is inserting its bets on AI-led transformation. Vijayakumar famous that a number of shoppers are exploring AI adoption not only for innovation however for price discount, which creates “robust development alternatives rising.”
The corporate has guided for two–5% development in FY26, suggesting confidence in AI-related and run-the-business offers regardless of the bigger slowdown.
Likewise, Tech Mahindra confronted a dip in This autumn FY25 income, which CEO Mohit Joshi attributed to a delayed renewal determination by a serious hi-tech consumer. Nonetheless, the CFO confirmed this, saying the sequential income dip was “primarily pushed by delay in closure of a renewal deal…within the hello‑tech section.” This language signifies a delay (not a cancellation) of 1 huge contract. He expects that deal to normalise within the subsequent few months.
The agency is relying on its three-year roadmap to ship mid-term development, with automation, AI, and community companies as key focus areas. Whereas TechM didn’t problem a selected FY26 income outlook, management indicated that FY25 was the trough and FY26 might convey a modest restoration—if giant shoppers resume spending.
The ‘Foot Dragging’
Mid-tier IT agency Persistent Techniques highlighted a unique problem—consumer indecisiveness. CEO Sandeep Kalra acknowledged clearly that “we now have not seen any cancellations”, however flagged a major slowdown in deal closures.
As a substitute, he famous a slowdown: a “specific amount of foot‑dragging” in closing the offers, with clients turning into extra hesitant. He described the scenario as “fluid” – offers in flight are slower to finalise, although the pipeline stays lively.
Kalra stopped wanting providing particular income steerage for FY26, citing fluid market situations. Nonetheless, he reaffirmed the agency’s long-term objective of hitting a $2 billion income run charge by FY27. Whether or not that focus on holds will depend upon how rapidly shoppers regain confidence.
Smaller corporations face heightened uncertainty. Sonata Software program, WNS, Coforge, and Mphasis have additionally acknowledged delays, particularly in verticals like retail, journey, and logistics. These sectors stay essentially the most susceptible to discretionary spending cuts.
Sonata, particularly, has seen slower-than-expected development in its cloud and platform modernisation companies. WNS, being extra depending on BPM contracts, has had much less publicity to giant tech tasks, however nonetheless warned of “slower quantity development” in Q1 FY26.
Regardless of this, the smaller corporations had a a lot better quarter and yr when in comparison with their bigger counterparts.
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What emerges from this cross-section of India’s IT management is a consensus: the disaster isn’t of demand collapse, however of delay. Budgets haven’t vanished, however they’ve been placed on maintain.
Shoppers nonetheless need digital transformation and AI, however solely after they lower prices, simplify operations, and assess dangers from new tariffs or world uncertainty. The shift can be philosophical. The place Indian IT as soon as grew on the again of discretionary tech spend, it’s now more and more being seen as a accomplice in price effectivity and enterprise continuity.
That narrative is unlikely to alter in FY26.
In brief, there isn’t a structural collapse in demand, however neither is there a swift rebound in sight. Indian IT leaders are strolling a fantastic line—reassuring stakeholders that the worst is behind, whereas quietly acknowledging that FY26 could also be one other yr of low to mid-single-digit development.
As TCS’s Krithivasan mentioned that the demand is there—it’s simply that shoppers are taking longer to behave. The query now’s: how lengthy can Indian IT corporations proceed to develop when shoppers are caught in determination limbo?
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