WESTPAC'S wealth management arm, BT Financial Group, has signed a letter of intent with GenPact for an offshoring initiative, probably in India.
The agreement, which was signed last Friday, heralds the next stage of the initiative, where GenPact has to convince BT that it can meet the specifications for the job.
If the project proceeds, it is understood that about 20 jobs, and at the most 30, will be affected in the Adelaide-based administration of BT's retail product range.
BT is the first cab off the rank in the Westpac group when it comes to offshoring, which involves the relocation of business processes to low-cost countries.
The Australian revealed last month that the bank could send up to 400 back-office jobs offshore before the end of the year, with GenPact, majority-owned by GE and two private equity firms, the frontrunner for that project as well.
Westpac's boss of information technology and operations, Michael Coomer, told an investor briefing on Monday that the bank was considering offshoring opportunities for its local and New Zealand operations.
Like other banks, Westpac is keenly aware of the need to keep a lid on costs.
Mr Coomer is responsible for around 41 per cent of Westpac's expenses, well down from 48 per cent in 2002.
Around half of the lower figure is constituted by activities that are outsourced.
BT boss Rob Coombe has previously said that the priority is redeployment of people affected by outsourcing to other parts of Westpac.
As of last week, there were around 30 job opportunities at the Westpac centre in Adelaide that involved similar tasks to the jobs at BT earmarked for potential offshoring.
The wealth manager is looking at ways of cutting costs in its mature retail business and reinvesting in its higher-growth corporate superannuation, margin lending and wrap activities.
Offshoring is regarded as the biggest threat to jobs in the finance sector since the branch closures and downsizing of the 1990s.
The Finance Sector Union has said up to 50,000 of the industry's 280,000 jobs could disappear.