Groww’s IPO draws heavy retail demand after global funds flood anchor book
Global funds piled into Groww’s anchor book even as early institutional bidding stayed soft on Tuesday.
The IPO of Billionbrains Garage Ventures Ltd., the parent company behind the Groww investing platform, closed its first day of bidding with strong interest from retail investors, while institutional participation stayed weak.
Total subscription stood at 0.51 times against 364.77 million shares on offer, based on provisional exchange data at market close.
Retail individual investors (RIIs) drove the bulk of the demand, subscribing to their quota around 1.76 times. Retail bids have consistently outpaced every other category, underscoring retail enthusiasm for consumer-facing fintech plays.
Non-institutional investors (NIIs) subscribed 0.48 times, aided by applicants in the Rs 2 lakh to Rs 10 lakh segment, which came in at 0.83 times. High-value bids above Rs 10 lakh remained lighter at 0.30 times.
Qualified institutional buyers (QIBs) barely showed up, subscribing just 0.10 times. Large investors usually wait until the final day.
The company locked in heavy support from global and domestic institutions through the anchor book, allocating 298.45 million shares at Rs 100 apiece, raising Rs 2985 crore ahead of the offering.
Large asset managers, including Kotak Flexicap Fund, Nippon India Multi Cap Fund, Government Pension Fund Global, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, and Goldman Sachs, took sizable positions. The Government of Singapore also emerged as one of the largest anchor allocations.
Among Indian fund houses, Kotak Flexicap Fund received nearly 15 million shares, while Nippon India Multi Cap Fund and Government Pension Fund Global each secured almost 16 million units. Additional allocations were made to funds managed by SBI, Aditya Birla Sun Life, Motilal Oswal, Mirae Asset, Tata, Bandhan, HSBC, Mahindra Manulife, and Bajaj Finserv.
Groww has set a price band of Rs 95 to Rs 100 a share for its initial public offering (IPO), seeking a valuation of about Rs 61,736 crore. The share sale comprises a Rs 1,060 crore fresh issue and an offer for sale (OFS) of Rs 5,572.3 crore, giving existing investors a sizeable liquidity event.
That makes the primary issuance just 16% of the total issue size, with the remainder enabling venture backers, such as Peak XV Partners, Ribbit Capital, YC Holdings, and Alkeon Capital, to pare stakes.
If fully subscribed, Groww’s IPO would rank among India’s largest fintech listings since Paytm’s debut in 2021.
Billionbrains Garage reported a nearly threefold increase in net profit to Rs 1,819 crore in FY25. In comparison, revenue soared 31% year-on-year to Rs 4,056 crore, according to a document seen by YourStory.
Founded in 2016, Tiger Global-backed Groww emerged as the market leader in stock broking in 2023. It has since retained this position, commanding more than a fourth of the market share by active clients.
(The copy was updated with the latest information)
Edited by Suman Singh