Slew of IPOs in the offing

As many as 700 companies, with plans of raising around Rs 3,00,000 crore are waiting to tap the primary market, according to Prithvi Haldea, chairman and managing director of Prime Database.

“Companies are now going back to the drawing board with their IPO plans and currently there are now about 700 companies with plans to raise Rs 3,00,000 crore waiting to enter the primary market," said Haldea at seminar here.

Recently, initial public offering (IPO) of companies like Mahindra Holidays & Resorts, Adani Power and NHPC renewed investor's interest in the primary market.

“ The fortunes of the primary market is closely linked to the secondary market and unless investors are comfortable with the stability in the latter, not many of them would put their money in new issues. Also, one IPO a month is hardly a revival. Post-October one might see some more activity in the primary market, if conditions improve,” said Haldea.

Oil India Limited (OIL), the nation's second-largest state-run explorer, will hit the market with an IPO on September 7.

Not just Oil India,the latest Economic Survey indicated that the government should sell a minimum 10 per cent stake in all unlisted public sector enterprises. It recommended a disinvestment target of Rs 25,000 crore annually for the government. The government is likely to raise Rs1,854 crore through the initial public offerings of NHPC and Oil India Ltd (OIL).