NSE IPO: Waiting for Sebi’s NOC to start process, says CEO Ashish Chauhan

The Dalal Street is eagerly awaiting the highly anticipated initial public offering (IPO) of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) , which has been on hold for several years. The world’s fifth-largest stock exchange by market capitalization has written to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), seeking a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the regulator to move forward with its share listing.

In a fresh update, NSE CEO and MD Ashish Chauhan said the IPO process is expected to take 8–9 months after receiving Sebi’s clearance.

“NSE had filed for settlement with Sebi in June 2025. Once the NOC is received, the exchange will require 4–5 months to prepare its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP), followed by another 4–5 months for Sebi’s review,” Chauhan told reporters on Wednesday in Delhi. He said this during the launch of the Hindi edition of his biography, Sthitapragya.

In June this year, the NSE reapplied for a fresh NOC from Sebi, which would allow the exchange to move forward with the listing of its shares.

“Once the NOC is received, the process becomes more procedural: it takes about 3-4 months to prepare the DRHP, after which we submit it to Sebi for approval. Sebi then takes another 3-4 months to review and respond. Overall, it’s roughly 8-9 months from the time the NOC is granted,” Chauhan said.

Earlier, in April, Sebi chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey, in an exclusive conversation with Fortune India, clarified that the regulator is not opposed to NSE’s IPO. “I want to dispel the notion that Sebi has been reluctant to allow the IPO. The BSE is already listed, so there’s no reason why the NSE cannot be listed as well,” he had said.

The NSE IPO has been eagerly awaited, as its previous attempt in 2016 was derailed due to the co-location controversy. Amid renewed listing buzz, the share price of the unlisted NSE has seen a notable jump in the grey market. Currently, NSE’s unlisted shares are trading at around ₹2,300 per share, while brokerages estimate the fair value in the unlisted market could be closer to ₹4,000 per share.

In December 2016, the NSE had filed its IPO document with the Sebi, reportedly aiming to raise around ₹10,000 crore. Existing shareholders, including U.S.-based Tiger Global Management, Aranda Investments, SAIF Partners (now Elevation Capital), Norwest Venture Partners, Citigroup Strategic Holdings, Goldman Sachs, State Bank of India, and others, were expected to sell a 23% stake in the exchange through an offer-for-sale.