NSE Files IPO Papers with SEBI, Setting Stage for One of India’s Biggest Public Issues

The National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) has taken a major step towards becoming a publicly listed company after filing its Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). The filing on 17 June 2026 brings the exchange closer to a public listing after years of regulatory delays.

The proposed IPO is an offer for sale (OFS) of up to 14.89 crore equity shares, representing around 6% of NSE’s total equity. The issue will not include any fresh shares, meaning the money raised through the offering will go to existing shareholders selling their holdings rather than to NSE itself. The exchange is proposed to list on the BSE.

Based on valuations in the unlisted market, the IPO has been estimated at around ₹30,000 crore. If the issue reaches that level, it could become the largest IPO in India’s stock market, overtaking Hyundai Motor India’s ₹27,870 crore offering in 2024. However, the final issue size, price band and valuation will depend on regulatory approvals and market conditions.

The proposed offer will allow several existing shareholders to sell part of their holdings. State Bank of India is the largest seller in the proposed offer, with up to 2.475 crore shares. Other selling shareholders include MS Strategic (Mauritius), Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Aranda Investments, Bank of Baroda and several state-owned insurance companies.

Life Insurance Corporation of India, NSE’s largest shareholder with a 10.72% stake, is not selling shares in the proposed issue. This means the IPO will not involve an exit by the exchange’s biggest shareholder.

The numbers behind NSE also make the proposed listing significant. For financial year 2025-26, the exchange reported ₹16,601 crore in operating revenue and ₹10,302 crore in net profit. Its net margin was around 51%. NSE also reported zero debt and operating cash flow of ₹23,836 crore during the year.

The exchange had 129.09 million unique registered investors, while the market capitalisation of companies listed on its platform stood at ₹411.25 trillion at the end of FY2026. These figures underline the scale of the business that investors could gain exposure to through a future listing.

The IPO has been a long time coming. NSE first attempted to list in 2016, but the process was held up by regulatory concerns and the co-location controversy involving allegations that certain brokers received preferential access to trading systems.

The exchange later pursued a settlement with SEBI and made changes to its governance and compliance framework. SEBI granted in-principle approval in January 2026, while NSE’s board formally approved the IPO in February. The exchange has since moved ahead with preparations for the proposed offering.

NSE has also appointed a large group of intermediaries for the issue. Twenty merchant bankers have been selected, along with law firms and other advisers, to assist with regulatory filings, due diligence, documentation, marketing and execution.

For India’s equity market, the listing could be significant beyond the size of the IPO. Investors would get an opportunity to own a stake in one of the country’s most important market infrastructure companies. At the same time, the final valuation will matter because a large IPO does not automatically mean an attractive investment.

The next steps will include regulatory review, finalisation of the offer documents and the eventual announcement of the price band and issue dates. The NSE IPO could therefore become one of the most closely watched events in India’s capital markets.