NSE IPO: Exchange likely to file draft papers on June 15–16; issue may be entirely OFS

The development comes months after NSE's board approved the proposed IPO on February 6, following the receipt of SEBI's no-objection certificate (NOC).

The proposed public issue will be entirely an offer for sale (OFS), with no fresh issue of shares, according to the report. Sources, PTI reported, said the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) is likely to be filed on June 15 or June 16.

The exchange has a broad-based shareholder base comprising domestic financial institutions, insurance companies, foreign investors, and individual shareholders.

Details to know

Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) is the single largest shareholder in NSE, holding a 10.72% stake. State Bank of India (SBI) and its subsidiary, SBI Capital Markets, together own around a 7.5% stake in the exchange.

Among foreign investors with significant holdings are Aranda Investments, a subsidiary of Temasek, and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB).

The filing would mark a major milestone for NSE, whose listing plans had remained on hold for nearly a decade due to regulatory issues, including the co-location controversy.

NOC to NSE

In January, SEBI granted an NOC to NSE, paving the way for the exchange to revive its IPO plans.

The proposed issue is expected to be among the largest in India's capital markets. NSE, which has around 1.8 lakh shareholders, is valued at over ₹5 lakh crore in the unlisted market, according to market participants.

NSE had first filed draft offer documents in 2016 to raise around ₹10,000 crore through an offer for sale by existing shareholders. However, SEBI withheld approval amid concerns related to governance lapses and the co-location case.

Since then, the exchange has made multiple representations to the regulator seeking clearance and has undertaken various governance and compliance measures.

NSE IPO preparations

As part of its IPO preparations, NSE appointed 20 merchant bankers, besides legal advisers and other intermediaries, to manage the proposed public issue.

In January, SEBI Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said that the regulator had granted "in-principle" approval to NSE's settlement application in the unfair market access case, a move widely seen as clearing a key hurdle for the IPO.

NSE had filed its settlement application in June 2025 in connection with the co-location case, in which certain brokers were accused of receiving preferential access to the exchange's trading systems.

After years of litigation, the exchange in 2025 offered to pay ₹1,388 crore to settle the matter and move forward with its long-pending listing plans.

NSE Q4 FY26 earnings

The National Stock Exchange (NSE) on May 5, 2026, reported an 8% rise in consolidated profit after tax (PAT) to ₹2,871 crore for the March quarter (Q4 FY26), driven by higher transaction volumes across segments.

The exchange had posted a PAT of ₹2,650 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal (Q4 FY25).

Its total income during the quarter increased 22% to ₹5,360 crore compared to ₹4,397 crore logged in the year-ago period, the exchange said in a statement.

Sequentially, net profit rose 19% from ₹2,409 crore in Q3 FY26, while income climbed 22% quarter-on-quarter (QoQ), reflecting strong growth in trading activity, particularly in the equity derivatives segment.

On a consolidated basis, total expenditure in Q4 FY26 rose 20% QoQ to ₹1,486 crore, largely due to a year-end CSR provision of ₹223 crore compared to ₹5 crore in the preceding quarter.