NSDL To Launch Rs 3000-Crore IPO By Next Month? Here’s How It Staks Up Against CDSL

Depository firm National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL) is aiming to launch its long-awaited Rs 3,000-crore initial public offering (IPO) by next month, a senior official told PTI. "Our dates are expiring next month. We are rushing against time to get things done fast. We will try (to launch the IPO before that)," said the official.

NSDL will become the second publicly traded depository in India to be listed on a stock exchange. Central Depository Services Limited (CDSL) was the first, which debuted on the NSE in 2017.

NSDL had received in-principle approval from the Securities Exchange Board of India (Sebi) for its IPO in September last year, after filing its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with the market regulator in July 2023.

NSDL, being a market infrastructure institution (MII), requires further approvals aside from the DRHP. The 12-month deadline for the DRHP expires in September, but it is the MII approval given by Sebi which is prompting the depository handling a bulk of India's dematerialised accounts to expedite the share sales process, the PTI report said.

NSDL is a Sebi-registered MII that offers a variety of products and services to India's financial and securities markets.

NSDL IPO Is Entirely An Offer For Sale Issue

As per the draft DRHP, the IPO will be entirely an offer for sale (OFS) of 5,72,60,001 equity shares. National Stock Exchange (NSE), State Bank of India (SBI), HDFC Bank, IDBI Bank, Union Bank of India and one more entity will be diluting their stakes, per the DRHP.

Since the public issue is completely an OFS, NSDL will not receive any proceeds from the IPO. The depository’s shares will be listed on the BSE.

NSE plans to sell up to 1,80,00,001 equity shares, SBI and HDFC Bank up to 40,00,000 shares each, IDBI Bank up to 2,22,20,000 shares, Union Bank up to 56,25,000 shares and the administrator of the specified undertaking of the Unit Trust of India will offload 34,15,000 shares.

ICICI Securities, Axis Capital, HSBC Securities and Capital Markets, IDBI Capital Markets & Securities, Motilal Oswal Investment Advisors and SBI Capital Markets will be the book-running lead managers of the issue, according to the DRHP. The registrar for the issue will be Link Intime.

NSDL vs CDSL: A Look At Both Depositories

The only peer company of NSDL is Central Depository Services Limited (CDSL). CDSL’s shares on Friday, February 21 closed at Rs 1,255.65 apiece. Over the past two months, the stock has been on a steep decline, falling nearly 37 per cent from its all-time high of Rs 1,989.80.

As of January 31, 2025, NSDL reported 3,88,17,704 active accounts in the equity segment, while CDSL, as of December 31, 2024, had 14,64,35,316 active accounts—nearly four times NSDL's number. In terms of Demat custody, NSDL holds Rs 470.38 lakh crore, while CDSL has Rs 74.57 lakh crore.

In Q3 FY25, CDSL's profit after tax grew by 21.5 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 130 crore, and its total income rose 26.3 per cent YoY to Rs 298 crore.

On the other hand, NSDL saw a 30 per cent increase in net profit to Rs 85.8 crore for the December 2024 quarter, and its total income climbed 16.2 per cent YoY to Rs 391.21 crore.