- State Bank of India invested in NSE at Rs 10 per share in 1992 and holds a 3.23% stake now
- SBI plans to sell up to 2.475 crore NSE shares in the upcoming offer for sale
- NSE's bonus issues reduced SBI's weighted average acquisition cost to 80 paise per share
State Bank of India was among the first institutions to back the National Stock Exchange when it was incorporated in November 1992. It put money in at Rs 10 per share, which was the face value with no premium. Three allotments, one rights issue, two bonus issues, and 33 years later, its weighted average cost of acquisition stands at 80 paise per share, as per NSE's draft red herring prospectus.
SBI is now selling up to 2.475 crore shares in the offer for sale. The bank currently holds 7.98 crore shares, a 3.23% stake, and is offering roughly 31% of that holding. It will retain the rest after listing.
The 80 Paisa Math
NSE's original face value was Rs 10 per share. The exchange did a 1:10 bonus in November 2016 and then a much larger 4:1 bonus in November 2024, giving four new shares for every one held as of November 2, 2024. That second bonus alone added 198 crore shares to NSE's paid-up capital, all at nil acquisition cost. Spread across SBI's entire holding, that drags the weighted average down to 80 paise.
SBI first received NSE shares on August 9, 1993, in a preferential allotment at Rs 10 each. More followed in a second preferential allotment on April 15, 1994, again at Rs 10. A rights issue in June 1999 at Rs 30 per share added further to the holding. Over the years, SBI trimmed its position several times, specifically in 2007, 2010, 2016, 2018, and 2019, selling tranches to buyers including MS Strategic (Mauritius) and HDFC Standard Life Insurance.
SBI Stake Worth And What The DRHP Doesn't Say
The DRHP carries no offer price. The price band will be disclosed only in the Red Herring Prospectus, once SEBI processes the filing and the company decides to open the issue.
What the DRHP does disclose is the range of secondary market transactions in NSE shares over the past year: Rs 1,350 to Rs 2,260 per share. At Rs 1,350, SBI's 2.475 crore offered shares would fetch around Rs 3,341 crore. At Rs 2,260, the same block comes to roughly Rs 5,591 crore. These are calculations based on disclosed secondary market prices, not the IPO price, which has not been set.
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Who Else Is Selling
The full Offer For Sale covers up to 14.89 crore shares across 22 selling shareholders. The other large corporate sellers include MS Strategic (Mauritius) at up to 1.6 crore shares with a weighted average cost of Rs 66.54, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board at up to 1.19 crore shares at Rs 324.13, Aranda Investments (Mauritius) at up to 1.12 crore shares at Rs 62.38, Bank of Baroda at up to 1.10 crore shares at Rs 0.54, and Stock Holding Corporation of India at up to 1.09 crore shares at Rs 0.46.
Four individuals are also selling under the OFS, namely Amit Kumar Lohia (up to 25,000 shares, WACA Rs 641.71), Rajiv Bolla (up to 7,500 shares, WACA Rs 660.02), Shaik Samdani Basha (up to 1,000 shares, WACA Rs 640), and Mahesh Gupta (up to 500 shares, WACA Rs 1,826.85). None of the four are identified by profession or designation in the DRHP.
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