NSE Completes ₹22,561 Crore IPO with Strong Institutional Demand and Moderate Retail Participation

The National Stock Exchange successfully concluded the ₹22,561.57 crore initial public offer on September 21 with a demand driven almost exclusively by institutional investors. 

At the close of bidding, the issue saw a subscription of 5.67 times as bids came in for 50.25 crore shares against the offer size of 8.86 crore shares. 

Qualified institutional buyers were the dominant players with a subscription of 12.68 times in their category. Non-institutional investors showed 6.54 times subscription and the retail investors 1.31 times. 

The NSE IPO, valued at ₹1,700-1,785 per share, is a complete offer for sale of 12.64 crore shares. It therefore means that NSE itself will gain no new funds from this issue. 

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Institutions drive the bulk of demand

Institutional demand built sharply on the final day. 

QIBs placed bids for 31.97 crore shares against 2.52 crore shares reserved for the category. Foreign institutional investors accounted for 14.03 crore shares, while domestic financial institutions, including banks, insurance companies and other financial institutions, bid for 6.80 crore shares. Mutual funds submitted bids for another 5.41 crore shares. 

The NII portion received bids for 12.35 crore shares against 1.89 crore shares available. Within that category, applications above ₹10 lakh were subscribed 7.78 times, while the ₹2 lakh-₹10 lakh segment was booked 4.06 times. 

Retail participation was more measured in comparison. Investors in this category bid for 5.77 crore shares against 4.41 crore shares reserved for them. The employee quota was subscribed 2.33 times.

No fresh funds for NSE

The structure of the public offering of NSE is simple, and it is fully OFS. 

There will be no new shares issued by NSE for raising capital for the business. Instead, there would be a sale of some part of existing stake by existing stakeholders. 

The IPO reserved 50% of the stake for the QIBs, 15% for the NIIs, and 35% for retail investors. 

The employees were allotted up to 4,33,437 shares at a discount of ₹170 per share. The minimum retail application would be of eight shares, which would be required ₹14,280 at the higher end of the price range. 

IPO values NSE at around ₹4.45 lakh crore

At the higher end of the price range between ₹1,700-1,785, NSE has been estimated at ₹4.45 lakh crore. 

Prior to the public offer, the exchange collected ₹6,746.18 crore from anchor investors, who had subscribed for 3.78 crore shares at ₹1,785 per share. 

Over 150 anchor investors subscribed for nearly ₹1.2 lakh crore in the anchor book. 

FY26 profit declines from previous year

NSE entered the IPO process after reporting lower income and profit in FY26 compared with the previous financial year. 

Total income stood at ₹18,713.37 crore in FY26, down from ₹19,176.83 crore in FY25. 

Profit after tax declined to ₹10,302.06 crore from ₹12,187.69 crore, while EBITDA stood at ₹14,519.09 crore compared with ₹16,021.36 crore a year earlier. 

The exchange’s red herring prospectus also highlighted risks tied to trading activity, revenue concentration, regulation and operational systems. Transaction charges account for a large share of NSE’s revenue, while the business remains sensitive to trading volumes across its markets.

Listing scheduled for September 24

The IPO opened on September 17 and closed on September 21. 

Allotment is expected to be finalised on September 22, with shares scheduled to be credited on September 23. NSE is expected to make its stock-market debut on September 24. 

The ₹22,561.57 crore issue is the second-largest IPO in India after Hyundai Motor India’s ₹27,870 crore offer in 2024. 

Its completion also comes during a busy stretch for the primary market, with six more mainboard IPOs scheduled to open between September 22 and September 24, seeking to raise a combined ₹4,511 crore. 

For NSE, the public issue marks a change in ownership and market visibility rather than a capital raise. The final subscription pattern was clear: institutions accounted for most of the demand, while retail investors participated at a more moderate level.