Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) is likely to be the top investor in the anchor book for the National Stock Exchange (NSE) IPO, according to sources familiar with the matter. Discussions are ongoing, and a final decision has not yet been made.
Sources indicate that LIC is expected to receive the largest allocation, followed by Norway's Norges Bank. Other potential major investors in the anchor book include Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), European investor Carmignac, Abu Dhabi-based Lunate, GIC, and Fidelity.
SBI Pension, SBI Life, and HDFC Life are also anticipated to be key participants, along with leading domestic mutual funds. Top global hedge funds are also expected to participate in this significant issue.
The anchor book for institutional investors will open for one day on September 16. The NSE IPO will open for public subscription on September 17, with a price band set at Rs 1,700-1,785 per share, and will close on September 21.
The exchange aims to raise Rs 22,561.5 crore, valuing it at Rs 4.42 lakh crore at the upper end of the price band. The offering consists solely of an offer for sale (OFS) of up to 12.64 crore equity shares by 10 existing shareholders, including State Bank of India (SBI), Bank of Baroda, MS Strategic (Mauritius), General Insurance Corporation of India, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, and Aranda Investments (Mauritius). There is no fresh issue component.
NSE's Market Position
NSE is India's largest stock exchange by total turnover across asset classes. As of the three months ending June 2026, it held a 93.05% market share in the cash market, 99.72% in equity futures, 68.48% in equity options, and 100% in exchange-traded currency futures and options, based on total premium turnover, according to the Redseer Report.
Globally, in fiscal 2026, NSE was the world's largest multi-asset-class exchange, with an 11.38% global market share in cash equity trades and 51.18% in traded equity derivative contracts.
NSE Financials
For the fiscal year ended March 2026, NSE reported a profit of Rs 10,302.1 crore, a 15.5% decrease from Rs 12,187.7 crore in the previous year. Revenue declined by 3.1% to Rs 16,601.3 crore from Rs 17,140.7 crore.
In the quarter ended June 2026, profit increased by 6.7% to Rs 3,120.1 crore from Rs 2,923.8 crore in the same quarter of the previous fiscal year. Revenue rose by 13.1% to Rs 4,560.4 crore from Rs 4,032.2 crore.
Twenty merchant bankers have been appointed to manage the NSE IPO, including Kotak Mahindra Capital Company, JM Financial, Morgan Stanley India Company, Citigroup Global Markets India, HSBC Securities and Capital Markets (India), JP Morgan India, SBI Capital Markets, Anand Rathi Advisors, Avendus Capital, Axis Capital, DAM Capital Advisors, Equirus Capital, HDFC Bank, ICICI Securities, IDBI Capital Markets & Securities, IIFL Capital Services, Motilal Oswal Investment Advisors, Nuvama Wealth Management, Pantomath Capital Advisors, and 360 ONE WAM.
