The National Stock Exchange is riding a wave of investor excitement, with its valuation in the private market touching Rs 5.8 lakh crore, according to people in the know.
Fueling this surge is the growing optimism around the long-awaited NSE IPO, which market watchers believe may finally be inching closer to regulatory approval.
Last week, the exchange's unlisted share price jumped sharply, and is now hovering above the Rs 2,000-mark, the sources told NDTV Profit on the condition of anonymity.
As reported previously, the exchange recently also reached 1 lakh shareholders, has a market cap of approximately Rs 5.8 lakh crore, becoming the largest unlisted company in the country. Meanwhile, a significant 31% stake in the company is currently held by public sector undertakings. Additionally, as of now, the country's leading exchange has just under 2.5 billion equity shares.
Tuhin Kanta Pandey, the chairperson of SEBI also hinted that the regulatory approvals for the NSE IPO might be given soon as consultations on the same are going on. The update was shared by the regulatory body's chief while speaking to the media at an event in New Delhi last week.
The exchange had filed its IPO prospectus back in 2016.
In a letter dated Nov. 21, 2016, the markets regulator approved the listing of equity shares on a recognised stock exchange, contingent upon compliance with applicable regulations and SEBI circulars. The offer received approval from NSE's board of directors and shareholders through resolutions passed on Oct. 4, 2016, and Nov. 10, 2016, respectively.
During that period, NSE, its directors, and its group companies were not barred from accessing or operating in capital markets by SEBI or any other authorities.
However, in a 2019 order, SEBI barred NSE from accessing the securities market for six months due to complaints related to its co-location facilities. Although the Securities Appellate Tribunal modified financial penalties in January 2023, it upheld the market access restriction.
Subsequently, NSE's 2022-2023 annual report emphasised that the six-month prohibition period had ended and that it awaited SEBI's further approval for listing. News articles in December 2023 suggested SEBI had imposed additional conditions for NSE's IPO approval, including maintaining a glitch-free year, enhancing technological infrastructure, improving corporate governance, and resolving pending legal matters.
Notably, the NSE co-location case was settled in October 2024 for a whopping amount of Rs 643 crore.
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