IT'S IPO' CLOCK AGAIN

AFTER A SUBDUED BEGINNING TO 2023, THE IPO MARKET HAS SEEN HEIGHTENED ACTIVITY IN THE PAST COUPLE OF MONTHS. CONSIDERING THE STRONG PIPELINE, THERE'S HOPE THIS MAY CONTINUE FOR SOME TIME YET

- ASHISH RUKHAIYAR & RAHUL OBEROI

PUBLIC SURGE

GOOD, BUT CAN do better.” This clichéd response is a ritual at parent-teacher meetings in schools. Now, though, it has also become a constant refrain in one unlikely place: the primary market.

Ask any market participant now about the primary market, and pat comes the reply: It’s doing fine, but it can definitely do better in the months ahead.

This is because there has been a notable increase in primary market activity, led by small and medium enterprises (SMEs), coming after two roller-coaster years when market participants first experienced exhilarating highs in 2021 before activity tapered and then plunged by the end of 2022. But there is a glimmer of hope that the strong pipeline of initial public offerings (IPOs)—or public issues in local parlance— could spark a repeat of 2021. IPOs worth over ₹80,000 crore are waiting to be launched.

This cautious optimism, to use a staple of market-speak, has taken a while to build because 2023 began with a visible lull in the primary market—the section of the market where new or unlisted companies get listed on the stock exchanges through IPOs. Then in March, a slow trickle of IPOs began—just two to three a month—that has gained volume and momentum to the extent that there were around 20 IPOs—including mainboard and SME issues—in September. This included public issues of well-known companies like JSW Infrastructure and Yatra Online.