After Infosys and Wipro, its now the turn of TCS to go shopping. CNBC TV 18 has learnt from sources that the Tata group company has shown preliminary interest in acquiring the offshore centres of UK Financial firm Prudential. Sources close to Asia's largest outsourcing firm TCS say that it may be interested in buying UK financial services firm Prudential's offshoring centres in the UK, Ireland, Scotland and India.

Prudential has offshoring centres in London and Reading in UK, Dublin and Belfast in Ireland, Stirling in Scotland and two centres in Mumbai. While the Mumbai arm employs about 1,200 people, industry sources say other centres together employ about 2,000 people. The centres in India offer services in knowledge, process, testing assurance and risk management to prudential globally. Banking sources add that Prudential has not yet officially mandated anyone. But bankers have had preliminary talks with TCS management and may initiate the formal process once prudential formally agrees for a sell-off.

Banking sources say that to arrive at a deal value may be too premature but the structuring will be similar to Infosys' recent Philips deal. Infosys got three of Phillips global offshore centres as part of an outsourcing deal. Meanwhile, when asked about the deal, TCS said we do not comment on market speculation, while Prudential said we do not comment on rumour & speculation and we are not in talks with investment bankers for sale on Indian BPO.