The National Stock Exchange of India made its stock market debut on Thursday, September 24, with shares opening at Rs 1,800 on the BSE against an IPO price of Rs 1,785. That gave the country’s largest stock exchange a listing premium of 0.84%, putting its debut in line with some of India’s largest public issues, although the opening gain remained modest compared with the size of the offering.
NSE’s Rs 22,561.57 crore IPO ranks as the second-largest public issue in India, behind Hyundai Motor India’s Rs 27,870.16 crore offering. LIC, Paytm and Tata Capital make up the rest of the five largest IPOs in this comparison.
The trend on how these stocks fared on day 1 throws up key similarities.
NSE opens at Rs 1,800 on BSE
NSE shares opened at Rs 1,800 on the BSE, a Rs 15 premium to the issue price of Rs 1,785. The opening price translated into a 0.84% premium over the issue price.
The IPO had a price band of Rs 1,700 to Rs 1,785 per share and was entirely an offer for sale by existing shareholders. The issue received bids for 50.58 crore shares against 8.86 crore shares on offer, resulting in overall subscription of 5.71 times.
NSE’s opening price was below the grey-market indications available before listing. The final reported grey-market premium had suggested an indicative price above Rs 1,800, but the actual BSE opening price settled at Rs 1,800.
NSE versus Hyundai Motor India
Hyundai Motor India remains the largest IPO in India by issue size, with its Rs 27,870.16 crore offering exceeding NSE’s issue by more than Rs 5,300 crore.
Hyundai Motor India shares had made a debut at Rs 1,931 on the BSE against the IPO price of Rs 1,960 on October 22, 2024. The opening price represented a 1.47% discount to the IPO price.
| Company | IPO size | IPO price | BSE listing price | Listing gain/loss |
| Hyundai Motor India | Rs 27,870.16 Cr | Rs 1,960 | Rs 1,931 | -1.47% |
| NSE | Rs 22,561.57 Cr | Rs 1,785 | Rs 1,800 | +0.84% |
| LIC | Rs 20,557.23 Cr | Rs 949 | Rs 867.20 | -8.62% |
| Paytm | Rs 18,300 Cr | Rs 2,150 | Rs 1,955 | -9.07% |
| Tata Capital | Rs 15,511.87 Cr | Rs 326 | Rs 330 | +1.23% |
The comparison uses BSE Ltd. opening prices for consistency, since the BSE provided the NSE listing price and comparable BSE debut prices are available for the other four companies.
LIC opened 8.62% below its IPO price
LIC’s Rs 20,557.23 crore IPO was India’s largest public issue before Hyundai Motor India overtook it in 2024.
The insurer’s shares opened at Rs 867.20 on the BSE against an IPO price of Rs 949 on May 17, 2022. That represented an 8.62% discount at the start of trading. The stock later touched Rs 920 during the session before ending at Rs 872.70, which was 8.04% below the IPO price.
The Life Insurance Corporation of India issue price was Rs 949, while Rs 904 was the effective price after the Rs 45 discount available to eligible policyholders, retail applicants and employees. Paytm opened at Rs 1,955 and ended much lower
Paytm’s Rs 18,300 crore IPO was the largest Indian IPO when it listed in November 2021.
The shares opened at Rs 1,955 on the BSE against an IPO price of Rs 2,150, producing a 9.07% discount. The stock then fell sharply during the session and closed at Rs 1,564.15 on the BSE, representing a 27.25% decline from the IPO price.
On the NSE, Paytm opened at Rs 1,950 and ended at Rs 1,560.00. The NSE opening represented a 9.30% discount to the Rs 2,150 IPO price.
The One97 Communications Ltd. debut provides a notable contrast with NSE. NSE opened at Rs 1,800, or 0.84% above its issue price, while Paytm opened at Rs 1,955, or 9.07% below its issue price.
Tata Capital opened 1.23% above its IPO price
Tata Capital raised Rs 15,511.87 crore through its October 2025 IPO, making it the fifth-largest issue in India’s primary market history. .
The shares opened at Rs 330 on both the BSE and NSE against an IPO price of Rs 326. The opening price represented a 1.23% premium.
Tata Capital ended its first trading session at Rs 330.40 on the BSE, up 1.35% from the IPO price. On the NSE, it closed at Rs 331.10, up 1.56%.
NSE’s 0.84% opening premium was therefore smaller than Tata Capital’s 1.23% opening premium.
NSE, the second-largest IPO seesmodest opening gain
The size of NSE’s public issue stands out when compared with the four other large IPOs.
Hyundai Motor India raised Rs 27,870.16 crore and opened 1.47% below its IPO price. LIC raised Rs 20,557.23 crore and opened 8.62% below its issue price. Paytm raised Rs 18,300 crore and opened 9.07% below its issue price. Tata Capital raised Rs 15,511.87 crore and opened 1.23% above its issue price.NSE raised Rs 22,561.57 crore and opened 0.84% above its Rs 1,785 IPO price.
| Rank by IPO size | Company | IPO size | BSE opening | Listing return |
| 1 | Hyundai Motor India | Rs 27,870.16 Cr | Rs 1,931 | -1.47% |
| 2 | NSE | Rs 22,561.57 Cr | Rs 1,800 | +0.84% |
| 3 | LIC | Rs 20,557.23 Cr | Rs 867.20 | -8.62% |
| 4 | Paytm | Rs 18,300 Cr | Rs 1,955 | -9.07% |
| 5 | Tata Capital | Rs 15,511.87 Cr | Rs 330 | +1.23% |
What happened after NSE opened
NSE did not remain at Rs 1,800 for the entire session. After the opening, the shares moved higher and reached Rs 1,878, according to market reports, which was 5.21% above the IPO price.
The opening price remains the relevant figure when calculating the official listing gain because it represents the price at which the shares began trading on the BSE. Later prices belong to the stock’s trading performance during the first session and should be presented separately.
This distinction is particularly useful when comparing NSE with Paytm. Paytm’s 9.07% discount at the opening became a 27.25% decline from the IPO price by the BSE close. Tata Capital, on the other hand, moved from a 1.23% opening premium to a 1.35% premium at the BSE close.
NSE’s debut sits between the other four large IPOs
Among these five large public issues, only NSE and Tata Capital opened above their respective IPO prices on the BSE.
NSE recorded a 0.84% opening premium, while Tata Capital opened 1.23% above its issue price. Hyundai Motor India began 1.47% below its IPO price, LIC opened 8.62% below, and Paytm opened 9.07% below.
The figures show how differently large public issues have behaved when trading began, even when their issue sizes ran into tens of thousands of crores.
Conclusion
NSE’s Rs 22,561.57 crore IPO made its debut at Rs 1,800 on the BSE, giving the stock a 0.84% premium over its Rs 1,785 issue price. That placed its opening performance above Hyundai Motor India, LIC and Paytm, while Tata Capital recorded a slightly higher 1.23% opening premium.
Hyundai Motor India remains India’s largest IPO by issue size at Rs 27,870.16 crore, followed by NSE at Rs 22,561.57 crore, LIC at Rs 20,557.23 crore, Paytm at Rs 18,300 crore and Tata Capital at Rs 15,511.87 crore.
NSE’s first trading session began with a relatively small premium despite the enormous size of the public issue. The Rs 1,800 opening price gives the exchange a starting point against which its subsequent listed-market performance can be measured.