NSE IPO will see light of the day, says Sebi chief Tuhin Kanta Pandey

The long-awaited initial public offering (IPO) of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) is expected to materialise soon. Speaking at the Business Standard BFSI Insight Summit in Mumbai, Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey expressed optimism about the NSE IPO while addressing investor concerns.

 

“The NSE IPO will see the light of the day,” said the Sebi chief.

 

Investors have been eagerly awaiting the IPO of one of India’s leading stock markets. NSE is the world’s largest multi-asset class exchange and the second-largest equity exchange globally. It is also the largest derivatives exchange worldwide and, at the end of 2024, was ranked the sixth-largest exchange by market capitalisation of unlisted shares, according to the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE). The anticipation around the IPO has already driven a surge in retail investor participation. The exchange’s public shareholder base rose sharply to 157,000 by June 2025, a four-fold increase since the end of March, reported Business Standard.

 

 

Recently, according to Hindu Businessline, NSE managing director and CEO Ashishkumar Chauhan said that the exchange has been awaiting its IPO approval from Sebi, known as the no objection certificate (NOC). “Hopefully, if it comes through, you will see NSE’s IPO in the next Samvat,” he added.

 

However, a report by Motilal Oswal Private Wealth suggests investors may still have to wait before applying for the IPO, with applications expected to open around March 2026. The NSE is likely to receive Sebi clearance to file its IPO prospectus soon, provided ongoing co-location and dark fibre cases are resolved.

 

“Once Sebi issues a no-objection certificate, NSE would likely take 4–5 months to prepare its Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP), followed by another 2–3 months for regulatory review. If all goes smoothly, NSE could be listed on the BSE by the fourth quarter of the current financial year (Q4 FY26),” the report added.