PhysicsWallah IPO: Know about the firm's business model, strengths and risks ahead of public issue

The company offers various kinds of courses, including exam preparation courses for NEET, JEE, government examinations, and foundation courses. It has a strong presence across online and offline channels.

PhysicsWallah IPO details

PhysicsWallah IPO aims to raise ₹3,480 crore through its public issue, which is a 100% book-built and includes a fresh issue and offer-for-sale of nearly 32 crore shares

The company has fixed the price band of the issue at ₹103 to ₹109 per share. The lot size, or the minimum bid quantity to apply for the issue, is 137 shares. This equates to a minimum investment amount of ₹14,933 per lot at the upper end of the price band for retail investors.

PhysicsWallah has appointed Kotak Mahindra Capital as the book-running lead manager of the IPO, while MUFG Intime India Pvt.Ltd is the registrar for the issue.

PhysicsWallah IPO timeline

PhysicsWallah IPO will remain open for bidding from November 11 to November 13, 2025. After the bidding is closed, the allotment of shares is expected to be finalised on November 14.

Successful bidders can expect the shares to be credited to their demat accounts by November 17, with others receiving refunds on the same day. PhysicsWallah shares are scheduled to list on the BSE and NSE on November 18, 2025.

Financial snapshot

PhysicsWallah IPO objective

• Capital expenditure: The company intends to use ₹1,208.7 crore towards various expenditures, like fit-outs of new offline and hybrid centres, lease payments and server and cloud-related infrastructure costs.
• Investment in subsidiaries: The company plans to use ₹75.16 crore towards investment in its subsidiary, Xylem Learning Private Limited and Utkarsh Classes & Edutech Private Limited
• Marketing activities: The company intends to use ₹710 crore towards marketing activities.
• Acquisition of additional stake: The company intends to use ₹26.5 crore towards the acquisition of additional shareholding in its subsidiary, Utkarsh Classes & Edutech Private Limited.
• General corporate purposes: Part of the IPO proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes and unidentified

About the company

PhysicsWallah's YouTube ecosystem included 206 channels and had 98.8 million subscribers as of June 30, 2025. The company’s digital community has expanded at a CAGR of 41.80% between FY23 and FY25. The company had 2.10 million and 4.13 million unique transacting users in online channels for the three months ended June 30, 2025 and FY25, while 0.33 million student enrollments each in offline centres during the same period.

The company’s offline business accounted for 48.75% of total revenue as of June 2025 and 46.83% in FY25 compared to 37.77% in FY23, which reflects its increasing focus on physical expansion. It operates a network of 303 offline centres across India, supported by more than 6,200 faculty members and 5,000+ non-teaching staff. The platform has cultivated strong engagement metrics, with 4.46 million paid users in FY25 and a growing user base in Tier II and Tier III cities.

The company’s paid test preparation courses, such as JEE, NEET and UPSC examinations, have the most affordable prices in India as of July 2025, ranging from ₹4,500 for JEE and ₹18,000 for UPSC, as compared to the top five players' pricing, ranging from ₹75,000 for JEE and ₹110,000 for UPSC.

Around 26.64% of online transacting users are enrolled in NEET courses, followed by 15.63% in JEE, 12.33% in government examinations, and 17.61% in foundation programs as of June 2025. The majority of the company’s hybrid centres are operated by its franchisee partners, which also includes providing residential or hostel services to students. In FY25, the company operated 216 residential hostels, of which 192 were operated under the Xylem brand and 24 were operated for its Vidyapeeth students through third-party hostels.

PhysicsWallah expanded its offline centres in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh by acquiring Utkarsh Classes in FY23, and Kerala by acquiring Xylem in FY24, and in the Middle East with the acquisition of Knowledge Planet in FY24.

Strengths and opportunities

• Strong and rapidly expanding student base: The company had 4.46 million paid users in FY25, growing at an impressive CAGR of 59.19% between FY23–FY25. For Q1FY26 alone, paid users increased to 2.43 million, up from 1.87 million in the same period last year. The company’s student-first approach and affordable pricing have successfully converted its digital community into paying users, strengthening long-term monetisation visibility.
• Diversified multi-channel presence: PW has evolved from a single-subject platform to a diversified edtech ecosystem offering 13 education categories as of June 30, 2025, up from six in FY23. Its multi-channel delivery includes online, offline, and hybrid modes. The company operated 303 offline centres as of June 2025, growing at a CAGR of 165.29% over FY23–FY25, supported by strategic acquisitions like Utkarsh Classes (for government exams) and Xylem (for South India expansion).
• Affordable pricing with strong brand affinity: Its one-year JEE course costs only ₹4,500, NEET course ₹4,800, and UPSC course ₹18,000, compared to ₹63,000–₹110,000 charged by top competitors. This affordability, combined with strong brand trust, has positioned “Physics Wallah” as India’s most searched and widely recognised edtech brand in FY25, with 98.8 million YouTube subscribers across 207 channels and 22.85 billion cumulative views.
• AI-backed learning technology: Its 548-member technology team has developed an ‘LMS’ Tech stack and launched AI tools like AI Guru, answering 2.82 million student queries per month, Smart Doubt Engine for instant in-class query resolution, and AI Grader, which evaluated 304,202 written responses from August 2024 to June 2025.

Risks and threats

• Net loss and negative net worth: The company posted a restated loss of ₹127.01 crore for the three months ended June 30, 2025, and ₹243.26 crore in FY25. As of March 31, 2024, PW also had a negative net worth of ₹861.79 crore and negative EBITDA during FY24 and Q1FY26. The losses are primarily attributed to higher employee benefit expenses, ESOP-related costs, professional fees to faculty, and advertising outlays. If the company fails to achieve the necessary level of efficiency, it could impact the business.
• Regional concentration in offline revenues: A significant portion of offline revenue is concentrated in key cities such as Delhi NCR (10.53%), Patna (8.21%), and Calicut (5.82%) as of Q1FY26. Any local disruptions, regional competition, or student migration trends could disproportionately impact revenue. Notably, student enrolments in Kota fell from 27,158 in FY23 to 11,540 in FY25, reflecting sensitivity to local demand fluctuations.
• Dependence on certain categories: Number of Unique Transacting Users (Online Channel) is concentrated in four core education categories-NEET (26.64%), JEE (15.63%), Other Government Examinations (12.33%), and Foundation Courses (17.61%), as of the three months ended June 30, 2025. Any decline in student enrolments or reduced interest in these categories could adversely impact revenue visibility and operational performance.