Mumbai, Sep 24: The National Stock Exchange (NSE) made a modest debut on the domestic stock market on Thursday, with its shares opening at Rs 1,800 on the BSE, a 0.84 per cent premium over the issue price of Rs 1,785.
The listing followed strong investor interest in the Rs 22,568.94-crore initial public offering. After opening, NSE shares gained further momentum and touched Rs 1,875 by around 10.10 am, more than 5 per cent above the IPO price.
At the initial trading levels, NSE’s market capitalisation stood at around Rs 4.63 lakh crore, highlighting the scale of the country’s largest stock exchange.
The IPO was subscribed 5.71 times, with bids received for 50.58 crore shares against 8.86 crore shares on offer. Qualified Institutional Buyers led the demand, with their portion subscribed 12.68 times, while the non-institutional investor category was subscribed 6.55 times. The retail portion was subscribed 1.39 times and the employee quota 2.40 times.
The strong response to the issue reflected investor interest in NSE’s established position in India’s capital markets, financial strength and long-term growth prospects.
Brokerages have also maintained a positive outlook on the stock. Macquarie initiated coverage with an ‘Outperform’ rating and a target price of Rs 1,965 per share, while Emkay Global Financial Services assigned a ‘Buy’ rating with a September 2027 target of Rs 2,050.
NSE reported revenue from operations of Rs 16,601.31 crore in FY26, compared with Rs 17,140.68 crore in FY25. EBITDA stood at Rs 11,097.90 crore, while profit after tax was Rs 10,302.06 crore. The decline in profit was partly attributed to one-time settlement costs.
The IPO was an offer for sale by existing shareholders, meaning the funds raised through the issue will go to the selling shareholders rather than directly to NSE.
NSE’s listing also highlights the broader trend in India’s IPO market, where strong subscription levels do not always translate into large listing-day gains. Recent mega issues, including Hyundai Motor India, LIC and Paytm, also recorded limited or negative debut-day performance.
The NSE listing will now put greater focus on the company’s earnings growth, trading activity, market share and ability to benefit from the continued expansion of India’s capital markets.