India’s IPO market raised INR 1.83 tn (USD 22 bn) in 2025, the highest annual total on record for the market, Bloomberg reports. Over the course of the year, more than 200 companies received approval to list or filed draft prospectuses, breaking a 27-year record. And in the last four months of the year, at least 63 companies went public in India.

It’s not all about foreign institutional investors anymore: Domestic institutions and retail investors now account for about 75% of IPO allocations, up from roughly 57% in 2021, even as foreign participation eased amid US tariff pressure and weaker global sentiment.

Who’s who of 2025 listings

Some of the largest 2025 debuts include:

  • Tata Capital: INR 140 bn (USD 1.7 bn);

  • HDB Financial Services: INR 123 bn (USD 1.5 bn);

  • LG Electronics India: INR 107 bn (USD 1.3 bn);

  • ICICI Prudential Asset Management: INR 100 bn (USD 1.2 bn);

  • Hexaware Technologies: INR 82 bn (USD 1 bn).

And there’s more yet in the pipeline: Quick commerce platform Zepto confidentially filed preliminary papers with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) for an INR 110 bn IPO, positioning itself for a potential 2026 listing window, PTI reports. The filing was made under the confidential route, which allows the company to engage with Sebi before public disclosure of financials and issue structure.

Zepto’s entry into the market comes as domestic liquidity supports book-building and as tech issuers test public-market appetite rather than private raises — a shift that aligns with India’s deeper primary-market pool and the broader 2025 listings cycle.

Our take: Zepto’s confidential filing underscores how tech issuers are turning to public markets at a time when domestic capital is driving book-building. For GCC sovereign funds and banks, that creates a clearer anchor-entry environment — supported by local liquidity rather than foreign flows — as India’s primary market becomes more self-sustaining.

The public market is now the exit route

Founders turned to listings for price discovery and secondary sell-downs as private funding tightened, creating a steady pipeline even as secondary-market activity softened.

Market backdrop: Participation in financial services, consumer and capital goods, and autos helped sustain valuations. These sectors accounted for nearly half of proceeds this year.

More than half of this year’s 358 listings on the main and junior boards are now trading below issue price, with most weakness in sub-USD 100 mn IPOs. Some larger offers are only marginally above offer price. Foreign ownership of NSE-listed companies has slipped to below 17%, the lowest level in about 15 years.

MENA in the book-build

Gulf sovereign funds and regional banks usually participate in large foreign IPOs through anchor and cornerstone allocations, rather than taking majority control positions. In 3Q 2025, the MENA region recorded 11 IPOs raising about USD 700 mn, with eight listings in Saudi Arabia contributing roughly USD 637 mn to that total. India’s USD 22 bn IPO year provides a larger primary-market pool, giving corridor investors access to deeper book-building liquidity than is currently available in most GCC markets.

Why it matters for MENA investors: As India’s primary market becomes more domestically anchored and deeper, MENA and Gulf allocators have multiple avenues to engage:

  • Anchor and cornerstone roles in large IPOs with strong local pricing support;

  • Chances for syndication and underwriting flow for banks active in India’s ECM;

  • Strategic ownership positions in financial and other sectors outside public offerings.

Outside the IPO market, some GCC allocators are taking control positions in Indian financial firms. Emirates NBD is acquiring a 60% stake in RBL Bank for about USD 3 bn, and Abu Dhabi’s IHC is acquiring 43.5% of Sammaan Capital for nearly USD 1 bn. These are private transactions running alongside public markets, reflecting interest in operational control rather than book-build participation.

What’s next? 2026 could remain active if global rate conditions stabilize. Regulatory data show more than 190 companies either cleared by the markets regulator Sebi or awaiting approval, with a potential fundraising pipeline exceeding INR 2.5 tn (USD 30 bn), Times of India reports. Large candidates — including Jio platforms, Flipkart India, the National Stock Exchange of India, PhonePe, OYO, and other high-profile issuers — are among the names preparing, though timelines will depend on market conditions.

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