IPO lock-in expiry: Shares worth around ₹2 lakh crore to enter stock market in three months

As the dust settles on recent initial public offering (IPO) listings, India’s equity markets are bracing for a fresh supply overhang. Over the next three months, lock-in periods for early investors in 101 companies will come to an end, unlocking shares valued at around ₹2 lakh crore ($23 billion) and eligible for trading in the secondary market. The actual selling may vary, but the wave of expiries is likely to keep investors on alert.

“Between 29th Dec 2025, and 30th Mar 2026, a total of 101 companies are slated to have their pre-listing shareholder lock-ins lifted amounting to the value of $23bn,” Nuvama Alternative & Quantitative Research said in a report.

As per the report, a significant portion of these shares is held by promoters and promoter-group entities, which mean actual secondary market supply could be materially lower than the headline number. The analysis includes all shareholders—both promoters and non-promoters—and covers companies listed up to December 25, 2025.

One-month lock-in expiries

The one-month lock-in expiries, largely scheduled in early to mid-January 2026, involve a relatively small share of outstanding equity across companies. In most cases, the unlock size ranges between 1% and 5% of total outstanding shares, and in terms of absolute volume it would be around 1 million shares at the lower end to about 17 million shares at the higher end, the report noted.

The list includes Aequs, Vidya Wires, Wakefit Innovations, Park Medi World, ICICI Prudential AMC, Meesho, Nephrocare Health Services, CORONA Remedies, and KSH International. Among them, newly listed Meesho will see the largest lock-in expiry, with about 110 million shares—around 2% of its equity—becoming eligible for trading on January 7.

This will be followed by Aequs (17 million shares, 2%) and Vidya Wires (9 million shares, 4%) on the same day. Wakefit Innovations is set to unlock 15 million shares (5%) on January 12, while Park Medi World will see 9 million shares (2%) open up on January 14. ICICI Prudential AMC’s lock-in expiry involves 7 million shares (1%) on January 16. Nephrocare Health Services will witness two tranches of expiries—2 million shares (2%) on January 9 and another 3 million shares (3%) on January 14—while CORONA Remedies will unlock 0.9 million shares (2%) on January 12. KSH International rounds out the list with 3 million shares (4%) becoming eligible for trading on January 19.

Three-month lock-in expiries

The three-month lock-in window, starting from December 29 till mid-March 2026, will expire for 36 companies in the next 60 days,This group includes companies such as Tata Capital, Canara HSBC Life Insurance, Lenskart Solutions, Pine Labs, PhysicsWallah, Meesho, Wakefit Innovations, ICICI Prudential AMC, Park Medi World, and CORONA Remedies, among others. Unlock sizes in this category typically range from 2% to 5% of total outstanding shares, with some variation across issuers.

While the percentage of equity unlocking remains relatively modest, several companies in this bucket have large equity bases, translating into meaningful absolute volumes becoming eligible for trading. Companies such as PhysicsWallah, Pine Labs, Lenskart Solutions, Tata Capital, and Meesho are each set to see tens of millions of shares come out of lock-in during this phase.

Among the larger unlocks, Tata Capital will see 71 million shares (2%) become eligible for trading on January 7, followed by LG Electronics India with 15 million shares (2%) on January 8. Canara Robeco AMC and Rubicon Research will unlock 7 million shares (4%) and 6 million shares (4%), respectively, on January 12, while Canara HSBC Life Insurance will see 35 million shares (4%) unlock on January 13. Midwest follows on January 19 with 0.6 million shares (2%).

Six-month lock-in expiries

Meanwhile, 6-month lock-in expiries will open up for 31 companies between late December and February, marking the most substantial tranche of post-IPO share unlocks in terms of both percentage and absolute volumes. Unlike the one- and three-month windows, several companies in this category will see a large proportion of their equity—often exceeding 50%—become eligible for trading, raising the potential for heightened stock-specific volatility.

Notable unlocks include Ellenbarrie Industrial Gases (23 million shares, 17%) on December 30 and Kalpataru (111 million shares, 54%) on December 31. Early January will see significant expiries from All Time Plastics (4 million shares, 6%) on January 1, HDB Financial Services (481 million shares, 58%) on January 2, Sambhv Steel Tubes (142 million shares, 48%) and Brigade Hotel Ventures (14 million shares, 4%) on January 5, followed by Globe Civil Projects (30 million shares, 51%) and Travel Food Services (87 million shares, 66%).

103 companies raised ₹1.75 lakh crore in CY25

In calendar year 2025, a record 103 mainboard companies made their debut on the BSE and NSE, raising ₹1.75 lakh crore—the largest annual IPO mobilisation in India’s history. IPO activity in 2025 surpassed the previous year’s record of ₹1.59 lakh crore raised by 91 companies in 2024, and marked a sharp jump from the ₹49,436 crore mobilised in 2023, according to data.

The surge in fundraising was driven by a strong pipeline of big-ticket offerings and a sharp rise in offer-for-sale (OFS) components, underscoring promoters’ growing inclination to monetise existing stakes amid favourable valuations. In 2025, OFS accounted for nearly 63.5%, or about ₹1.11 lakh crore, of total IPO proceeds—making it one of the most OFS-heavy years in India’s capital market history.

However, data from Prime Database shows that the buoyant fundraising environment did not translate into strong debut-day gains for investors. The average listing gain in 2025 slipped to just 9.9%, the lowest since 2022, and well below the 30.25% recorded in 2024 and 28.68% in 2023. This stands in sharp contrast to the pandemic-era boom, when average listing gains averaged 43.82% in 2020 and 32.19% in 2021, fuelled by abundant liquidity and heightened risk appetite.

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