As part of the seven-year agreement, Cognizant will purchase ING U.S.’s existing facility in Minot, N.D., and will sublease offices in the current ING U.S. facility in Des Moines, “providing business and workplace continuity for ING U.S. customers and the employees who will transition to Cognizant,” Cognizant said in a release. Cognizant said it plans to hire more than 1,000 ING employees in Des Moines and Minot to staff the center. 

The center will be an integral part of Cognizant’s global delivery network and will allow the company to provide an expanded range of business process services spanning the insurance and financial services industries, according to the release. Cognizant currently provides business process services to more than 40 clients in those industries.

“We are pleased to partner with ING U.S. to launch our U.S.-based business process services center of excellence for the insurance and finance industries,” said Gordon Coburn, president of Cognizant. “We look forward to welcoming ING U.S.’s employees to Cognizant and working with this highly talented group of individuals. Our new center of excellence will serve as a key long-term component of our global delivery network and is yet another step in our ever-expanding in-country delivery capability.” 

Neither Cognizant nor ING officials could not be immediately reached for comment on how many Greater Des Moines employees will be transitioned to Cognizant, or whether the shift would mean additional hiring by either company in Greater Des Moines. 

In a release, ING President and Chief Operating Officer Rob Leary said: “Leveraging Cognizant’s expertise will help us operate more efficiently while delivering the high levels of support our customers and distribution partners have come to expect. While this expanded relationship represents job continuity for our transitioned employees, it also allows us to focus on our ultimate mission – providing the retirement, investment management and insurance solutions that help our clients meet their financial needs.”

Cognizant’s financial services practice, which includes banking, insurance, and transaction processing, is the company’s largest industry segment, serving leading financial institutions and insurers in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific region. Current clients include nine of the top 15 North American financial institutions, all of the top 10 European banks, and seven of the top 10 global insurers.