Mumbai, July 25 Investors of National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL) were left surprised on Friday after the company announced its initial public offering (IPO) price band at a steep discount of 22 per cent from its prevailing unlisted market valuation.
The IPO price band at Rs 760–800 per share, looks disheartening to the investors who hold the stock now at its unlisted market price of Rs 1,025 per share. The shares of NSDL which were trading at Rs 1,025 in the unlisted market, have already witnessed a 20 per cent correction from their recent peak of Rs 1,275 seen on June 12, 2025.
NSDL’s IPO will open for subscription on July 30, 2025 and close on August 1, with anchor investor participation beginning on July 29. The issue, which is a pure offer for sale, aims to raise around Rs 4,011 crore.
If the NSDL shares get the cut-off price at the upper end of the IPO price band, the company’s market capitalisation will be around Rs 16,000 crore.
Recently, the Indian IPO market has seen similar steep cuts in price bands from companies such as HDB Financial Services, Tata Technologies, AGS Transact, UTI Asset Management Company, and PB Fintech.
Analysts urge investors to reconsider entering the unlisted space solely based on IPO anticipation unless they are looking for a long-term, high-risk investment. For true value creation in unlisted space, investors have to enter two to three years ahead of the IPO at discounted valuations.
For instance, early investors in NSDL stand to gain significantly, whereas later investors may face losses. IDBI Bank, which holds a 26 per cent stake in NSDL, had acquired its holding at an average cost of Rs 2 per share, translating into a staggering return of over 39,000 per cent; its stake is now valued at Rs 4,176 crore, up from an initial investment of Rs 10.44 crore.
Market experts tell retail investors that it's not worth the extra risk when the unlisted price doesn't offer a meaningful discount to the expected IPO price. They feel that upcoming IPOs from Tata Capital, Hero Fincap, and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) will likely follow similar conservative pricing strategies.
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