Singing solo in India in the next six to eight months, the investment banking space will see four large global players unfolding their India plans. The list includes global giants like UBS, Goldman Sachs, CSFB and Lehman Brothers.

Most of these players are also believed to be looking at starting their own institutional equities business in India. Some of them have already begun middle and top-level recruitments, and the rest are planning on transferring senior executives from their overseas operations to India. Will the new capacities and talent change the face of the industry?

Yes, say some, since the capacity will expand radically the volumes and margins in the industry may be under pressure. Others argue that there may be a knee jerk reaction but margins may recover soon because the i-banking market is growing at about 30 to 40 per cent, that includes IPOs and advisory businesses.

With the pie expanding substantially, they say that there is ample room for another two to three large global players. That's because they believe that cross border business will grow exponentially here on.

Experts say that this will be the 'niche' market for all global i-banks! Some explain that existing players like JM Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch and Kotak may still have an advantage because the business is about 'long term relationships' and quality of service - more than it is about margins.

But they admit the pressure on human resources in the industry is immense. So most existing players are actively training their employees, sprucing up the quality of their services and encouraging connectivity with their international counter parts.