(Bloomberg) — National Stock Exchange of India Ltd., the world’s largest derivatives exchange by volume, cut the size of its initial public offering, a sign of growing concerns about investors’ willingness to buy shares at the price the firm was seeking.
The company cut the number of shares on offer to 126.44 million from 148.9 million previously planned, according to a red herring prospectus filed in Mumbai late on Thursday. The offering will consist entirely of existing shares, with about 5.1% of the company’s share capital up for sale, down from about 6% previously planned, the filing said. The placement will accept applications from investors from September 17 to 21, with a potential listing taking place on September 24.
The NSE’s valuation has come under increasing scrutiny as investors worry about slowing growth and tightening regulatory oversight of the stock market. Options trading, a key driver of the exchange’s growth, has come under particular pressure as Indian authorities seek to curb speculative activity in derivatives. As a result, the company is now likely to set the IPO price at Rs 1,700-1,785 per share, lower than its earlier stated range of Rs 2,000-2,100, people familiar with the matter said.
Read: NSE scales back IPO ambitions as world’s biggest options boom subsides
At the top end, selling shareholders could raise up to 226 billion rupees ($2.4 billion), below the 278.7 billion rupees raised by Hyundai Motor Co.’s Indian unit. in 2024 in the country’s largest IPO in history. The stock exchange is expected to announce the official price range this week, Bloomberg News reported.
In draft NSE filings in June, State Bank of India, General Insurance Corp. were the selling shareholders. of India Ltd. and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.
Shareholders that cut their stake include State Bank of India, Morgan Stanley, Bank of Baroda and General Insurance Corp of India Ltd.
–With assistance from Chiranjeevi Chakraborty and Devidutta Tripathi.
(Updates with more details.)
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