Bajaj Housing Finance shares crash 9% on block deal buzz; here is what we know

On Monday, Bajaj Housing Finance promoter Bajaj Finance said it would divest up to 2% of its equity shares of the company.

As of December 1, Bajaj Finance holds 739 crore equity shares, totalling 88.7% of the total paid-up capital.

“Bajaj Finance Limited, the promoter of the Company, has conveyed to us their intention to sell the Equity Shares to enable us to comply with the requirements of minimum public shareholding,” Bajaj Housing Finance said in a regulatory filing.

Further, Bajaj Finance plans to offload up to 2% of the company’s equity, about 1.66 crore shares, in one or more tranches.

In its regulatory filing, Bajaj Housing Finance said the sale period will run from December 2, 2025, to February 28, 2026, or until all the shares are sold—whichever comes earlier.

Bajaj Housing Finance listing details

Shares of Bajaj Housing Finance Ltd made a solid market debut on September 16, 2024, listing with a huge premium of 114.28% against the issue price of ₹70.

The stock got listed at ₹150 on both the BSE and NSE, reflecting a jump of 114.28% from the issue price.

Later, it zoomed 129.88% to ₹160.92 on the BSE.

On the NSE, shares of the firm surged 130% to ₹161.

The company's market valuation stood at ₹1,30,751.90 crore.

The ₹6,560 crore initial public offer (IPO) of Bajaj Housing Finance Ltd received 63.60 times subscription on September 11, the last day of bidding, amid overwhelming participation from institutional buyers.

The initial share sale had a price band for the offer at ₹66-₹70 per share.

IPO details

The IPO had a fresh issue of equity shares of up to ₹3,560 crore and an offer-for-sale (OFS) of equity shares to the tune of ₹3,000 crore by parent Bajaj Finance.

The share sale was conducted to comply with the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) regulations, which require upper-layer non-banking finance companies to be listed on stock exchanges by September 2025.

Proceeds from the fresh issue, the company had said, will be used to augment the company's capital base to meet future capital requirements.

Bajaj Housing Finance is a non-deposit-taking housing finance company registered with the National Housing Bank in September 2015.

What is the 75% public shareholding norm?

In India, the minimum public shareholding (MPS) rule requires all listed companies to ensure that at least 25% of their shares are held by the public. This effectively means that the maximum a promoter or promoter group can hold is 75%.

So, when people refer to the “75% public shareholding norm”, they are actually referring to this MPS requirement. If promoters hold more than 75% in a listed company, they must reduce their stake to 75% or below to ensure at least 25% public ownership.

This rule promotes fair pricing, sufficient market liquidity, and improved corporate governance by preventing excessive concentration of ownership among promoters.