NSE IPO Targets September Launch; SBI Among Key Sellers While LIC Retains Stake In ₹30,000-Crore Issue

India's largest stock exchange is moving closer to its long-awaited public listing, with the National Stock Exchange (NSE) targeting a September launch for its initial public offering (IPO).

The exchange is expected to begin formal investor roadshows as early as next week, with meetings planned across the US, London, Singapore, Hong Kong, the Middle East and India. The proposed issue, estimated at around ₹30,000 crore, is expected to value the exchange at more than ₹5 lakh crore.

While the IPO will be entirely an Offer for Sale (OFS), the latest draft papers also identify the shareholders planning to pare their holdings. Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), however, will retain its 10.72% stake and is not participating in the share sale.

The final issue size, valuation and launch timeline remain subject to regulatory approvals and market conditions.

What The Offering Looks Like

NSE filed its draft prospectus last month for an initial public offering (IPO) that will consist entirely of secondary share sales, with no fresh capital being raised by the exchange itself.

Existing shareholders plan to offload up to 148.9 million shares, representing approximately 6% of the company. The exchange is aiming to raise as much as $3 billion from the offering.

State Bank of India is the largest selling shareholder, proposing to offload up to 2.48 crore shares. MS Strategic (Mauritius) Ltd plans to sell up to 1.60 crore shares. Other shareholders participating in the Offer for Sale 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.

LIC, the exchange's largest shareholder with a 10.72% stake, is not participating in the Offer for Sale and will continue to hold its investment after the listing.

At a valuation of more than ₹5.25 lakh crore, or around $55.1 billion, the full stake sale could potentially raise over ₹30,600 crore. If that happens, it would surpass Hyundai India's ₹27,870 crore IPO in 2024, which currently holds the record for India's largest public offering.

Banks Managing The Deal

Ahead of the proposed listing, NSE reported a profit after tax of ₹10,302 crore for FY26, down from ₹12,188 crore in FY25. Total income also slipped to ₹18,713 crore during the financial year from ₹19,177 crore a year earlier.

Around 20 banks have been brought on to work on the share sale. These include Kotak Mahindra Capital, JM Financial, Morgan Stanley, HSBC and Citigroup, among others.

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Part Of A Wave Of Large Listings

NSE's offering is expected to be one of several large IPOs hitting Indian markets around the same time. Reliance Industries' digital arm Jio Platforms and SBI's mutual fund unit are also among the major listings being anticipated, making this a particularly active period for India's primary markets.

NSE first filed draft papers for its IPO in 2016, but the proposal remained pending for several years due to regulatory concerns linked to governance issues and the co-location matter. The listing process gathered pace after the exchange received a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), following which its board approved the IPO proposal on February 6 this year.