NSE chief Chauhan rejects Tata Sons top job buzz, says fully committed to ongoing IPO, listing process

NSE Managing Director and CEO Ashishkumar Chauhan has denied reports that he is being considered for the post of Tata Sons Chairman, saying he remains “fully committed” to his responsibilities at the exchange and its ongoing IPO and listing process.

The National Stock Exchange (NSE), in a clarification on Sunday, said media reports and market rumours suggesting that Chauhan was under consideration for the Tata Sons chairman's position were “not based on any information available with the exchange”.

“Chauhan has categorically denied such reports and confirmed that they are speculative and factually incorrect,” NSE said.

According to the exchange, Chauhan has confirmed that “he remains fully committed to his responsibilities at NSE and to the ongoing IPO and listing process of the Company”.

The clarification came in reference to a PTI report published on September 5 that said Tata Sons had narrowed its search for a successor to Chairman N Chandrasekaran to three corporate leaders: Tata Steel CEO and MD T V Narendran, Tata Sons Executive Director and Group CFO Saurabh Agrawal, and Chauhan.

The PTI report, citing people familiar with the matter, had described Narendran as the frontrunner among internal candidates, with Agrawal also in contention and Chauhan as a potential “dark horse”.

The selection process is still underway and no final decision has been taken, according to the people cited in the report.

Chandrasekaran, who took over as Tata Sons chairman in 2017 and is serving his second five-year term, announced last month that he would not seek reappointment when his tenure ends on February 20, 2027.

NSE IPO

Meanwhile, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has approved NSE's much-awaited initial public offering, clearing the way for the country's largest stock exchange to proceed with its listing plans.

The proposed ₹30,000-crore issue is entirely an offer-for-sale (OFS), allowing existing shareholders to monetise their holdings.

SEBI issued an observation letter, effectively clearing the exchange to proceed with the IPO, according to an update on the regulator's website on Friday.

The NSE's proposed offering of 14.89 crore shares is set to compete with Jio Platforms Ltd for the distinction of being India's biggest IPO.

Jio's offering is estimated at around ₹37,700 crore, but its timing has not yet been announced.

The NSE IPO will surpass Hyundai Motor India's ₹27,858.75-crore listing in 2024 and Life Insurance Corporation of India's ₹20,557.23-crore offering in 2022.

The exchange is expected to announce the IPO price band and other key details next week.

Chauhan, who has been at the helm of NSE since 2022, was among the executives who helped establish the exchange in the 1990s. He had earlier served as MD and CEO of the Bombay Stock Exchange.

An IIT Bombay graduate with a postgraduate management degree from IIM Calcutta, Chauhan has also worked at Reliance Industries and IDBI Bank.

The Tata Sons succession process is being closely watched as the group prepares for a leadership transition at the holding-company level.

Noel Tata is expected to play an important role in the succession process as chairman of Tata Trusts and a non-executive director on the Tata Sons board.