IPO Month: Indian Stock Market Sees Record Surge in Public Listings, September Poised as Busiest Month in 14 Years

September is shaping up to be the busiest month for IPOs in 14 years, according to data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released on September 20. Over 28 companies have gone public this month, across both the mainboard and the small and medium enterprise (SME) segment.

The RBI’s report highlights that the surge in IPOs, especially in the SME sector, has been driven by growing interest and oversubscription. India also led globally with the most public listings, accounting for 27% of all IPOs in the first half of 2023-24. In terms of funds raised, the country contributed 9% of the global total.

However, the RBI raised concerns about promoters using this opportunity to sell their shares at higher prices, especially in the SME sector.

The central bank has also introduced regulatory changes to manage IPO oversubscriptions. It limited IPO funding by non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) and moved to a lottery-based allotment system instead of a proportional one. These measures have helped curb oversubscription rates, particularly in mainboard IPOs.

On the stock market front, the Nifty 50 index ended Friday 1.48% higher at 25,790.95 points, while the BSE Sensex closed 1.63% higher at 84,544.31 points.