The ₹5,421-crore initial public offering (IPO) of e-commerce unicorn Meesho started on a strong note on Wednesday, with the retail investor portion getting fully subscribed within the first hour of opening. By 11:00 AM, the overall issue was subscribed 0.39 times, led by heavy retail participation.

According to BSE data, the retail category received bids for 7.31 crore shares against 5.10 crore shares on offer, translating into 1.43 times subscription. The non-institutional investor (NII) segment subscribed 0.45 times, with stronger interest seen in the smaller HNI category (₹2–10 lakh bids), which was 0.67 times subscribed. The large HNI segment (₹10 lakh+) saw more moderate demand at 0.35 times.

Meanwhile, the qualified institutional buyers (QIB) category had not received any bids at the time of reporting. In total, Meesho received bids for 10.80 crore shares against 27.79 crore shares available.

As per the DRHP filed with the Sebi, Meesho has reserved 75% of the issue for QIBs, 15% for NIIs, and remaining 10% for retail investors.

The strong retail response comes a day after Meesho raised ₹2,439 crore from anchor investors, which garnered an overwhelming 32x demand, led by SBI Mutual Fund, Tiger Global, BlackRock, GIC, ADIA, Fidelity, Baillie Gifford and others. The unicorn allocated 21.98 crore equity shares at the upper end of the price band at ₹105-₹111 per equity share.

Out of the total allocation to the anchor investors, ₹1,040 crore worth of shares (or 45.91%) were allocated to 14 domestic mutual funds through a total of 52 total schemes, as per the exchange data.

The three-day IPO of the Bengaluru-based e-tailer will close on December 5, while allotment of shares is expected to be finalised on December 8. Meesho shares are scheduled to list on the BSE and NSE on December 10, 2025.

Meesho IPO comprises a fresh issue of equity shares worth ₹4,250 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of 10.55 crore shares worth ₹1,171 crore. Among the selling shareholders in the OFS are Elevation Capital, Peak XV Partners, Golden Summit, Y Combinator, and the promoters.

Meesho plans to use the proceeds from its fresh equity issuance to enhance its cloud infrastructure through its subsidiary, Meesho Technologies Private Limited, support salaries for its AI, machine learning and technology teams, and step up investments in marketing, brand building and strategic acquisitions. A portion of the funds will also be allocated to general corporate purposes.

Meanwhile, Meesho has created buzz in the grey market premium (GMP). The latest GMP stands at ₹45, according to data available on multiple websites that track grey market trends. Based on the upper end of the price band of ₹111, the e-commerce firm’s estimated listing price is pegged at around ₹156, a 40.54% premium over the issue price.