IPOs are back on the menu for India's rising elite
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. After a brief post-pandemic lull, India’s affluent are again betting on initial public offerings (IPOs) to make a fortune. Sample this: Of ₹159,784.16 crore, 91 main-board companies collectively raised through public issues in 2024, ₹20,000 crore came from high-net-worth individuals (HNIs).
HNIs are people who have investable assets exceeding ₹5 crore. To be sure, HNI subscription to IPOs peaked at an average of 203.28X (over ₹ ₹26,000 crore in absolute terms) in 2020, the year of covid-19 outbreak, and has been declining since. However, 2024 marked a revival, with subscription levels climbing to 104.80X—the highest in three years, showed data from Prime Database.
Investment bankers believe that impressive listing gains during the post-pandemic bull run have fueled investor confidence, prompting them to allocate funds to this high-risk, high-reward segment. Milind Muchhala, executive director at Julius Baer India, highlighted that the post-covid surge in equity-driven wealth creation has significantly boosted investors' risk appetite. IPOs, often delivering impressive listing gains (or even gains in the unlisted market), have instilled greater confidence among HNIs.
“Considering the recent returns profile in the small- and mid-cap IPOs, HNIs are particularly drawn to this segment." Of the ₹159,784.16 crore, nearly ₹33,000 crore came from retail investors. Meaning, HNIs and retail investors accounted for one-third of the capital raised. That said, IPOs are just one facet of measuring investor enthusiasm and confidence for equities.
Since 1 January 2020, the Nifty is up 91%. Affluent Indians' high-risk appetite seems to be driving this heightened interest in equities. “The propensity to
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