NSE targets September launch for Rs 30,000-crore IPO after Sebi nod

The National Stock Exchange (NSE) is targeting to launch its much-awaited initial public offering (IPO), estimated at around Rs 30,000 crore, in September, people familiar with the development said on Monday.

The mega IPO is expected to value the country's largest stock exchange at over Rs 5 trillion.

The exchange will soon begin roadshows for the IPO.

If successful, the issue will surpass Hyundai Motor India's Rs 27,870-crore public offering launched in October 2024.

The proposed public issue will be entirely an offer for sale (OFS) of 14.89 crore equity shares, with existing shareholders collectively divesting nearly 6 per cent of the exchange's equity, according to the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) filed in June. NSE has around 1.8 lakh shareholders.

 

Among the major shareholders selling their stake, State Bank of India will offload up to 2.48 crore shares, followed by MS Strategic (Mauritius) Ltd with 1.60 crore shares. Other shareholders proposing to sell shares include Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Aranda Investments (Mauritius) Pte Ltd, Bank of Baroda, Stock Holding Corporation of India Ltd, General Insurance Corporation of India, The New India Assurance Company, National Insurance Company and United India Insurance Company.

Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), the exchange's largest shareholder with a 10.72 per cent stake, will not participate in the share sale.

NSE's board had approved the proposed IPO on February 6 following the receipt of the Securities and Exchange Board of India's (Sebi) no-objection certificate (NOC).

NSE had first filed draft papers for its IPO in 2016 to raise around Rs 10,000 crore through an OFS. However, Sebi did not clear the proposal then amid concerns over governance issues and the co-location matter.

Since then, the exchange has undertaken several governance and compliance measures and made multiple representations to the regulator seeking approval.

As part of the IPO process, NSE has appointed 20 merchant bankers, besides legal advisers and other intermediaries, to manage the public issue.

On the financial front, the exchange reported a 15 per cent decline in profit after tax to Rs 10,302 crore in FY26 from Rs 12,188 crore in FY25. Total income also eased to Rs 18,713 crore during the fiscal from Rs 19,177 crore a year earlier.

For the March quarter, however, profit after tax rose 8 per cent to Rs 2,871 crore from Rs 2,650 crore in the corresponding period of the previous financial year, while total income increased 22 per cent to Rs 5,360 crore from Rs 4,397 crore.

Close on the heels of the NSE announcement, Reliance Industries-promoted Jio Platforms also filed its draft papers with Sebi in June, and it is expected to be the largest public issue in the history of the Indian stock market.