The much-awaited initial public offering (IPO) of the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) could be closer to launch, leaving investors with two routes to gain exposure to the exchange: buy its shares in the pre-IPO, unlisted market or wait for the public issue.

Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey on August 27 said the market regulator was close to clearing the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) filed by NSE, the world’s largest derivatives exchange by trading volume.

NSE filed its draft prospectus in June for an IPO that will comprise entirely of an offer for sale (OFS), allowing existing shareholders to pare their stakes. The exchange had initially expected SEBI clearance for its DRHP by early August. The timeline was subsequently pushed back by around three weeks following changes to the roster of selling shareholders, with SBI Capital Markets being added.

At the top end of the marketed valuation of Rs 5.26 lakh crore ($55 billion), NSE would rank sixth among global exchange operators by market capitalisation, narrowly behind London Stock Exchange Group Plc and ahead of Nasdaq Inc, according to Bloomberg.

NSE unlisted share price

NSE’s unlisted shares are currently changing hands at around Rs 1,970, according to data from Unlisted Arena. The shares were quoted at around Rs 2,010 when NSE filed its DRHP.
Over the past year, the unlisted stock has traded in a range of around Rs 1,800-2,150, well below its June 2025 peak of Rs 2,590.The shares had slipped to around Rs 1,950 on July 28-29 before recovering to current levels.

ALSO READ: NSE IPO coming soon: Should investors buy unlisted shares now or wait for the mega issue?

With NSE’s IPO expected in the second half of September, investors are now assessing whether to enter the stock through the unlisted market or wait for the public offering and its eventual listing.

How to buy NSE unlisted shares

NSE shares currently trade in the unlisted, over-the-counter market, where investors can acquire equity in companies ahead of their listing on recognised stock exchanges.

Unlike a listed stock, NSE’s unlisted shares do not have a continuous exchange-based price discovery mechanism or a live market price. Trades are negotiated privately between buyers and sellers, with the final transaction price depending on the prevailing quote and available liquidity.

Investors looking to acquire NSE shares can approach SEBI-registered investment banks, brokers or specialised unlisted-share dealers. These intermediaries facilitate transactions by matching investors seeking to buy pre-IPO shares with existing shareholders looking to sell.

Investors can also purchase shares directly from existing shareholders, including promoters, founders, angel investors and employees holding vested ESOPs. Such transactions are generally negotiated over the counter and may involve sizeable minimum ticket sizes.

Pre-IPO platforms also aggregate such opportunities and facilitate the KYC, price discovery and share-transfer process.

Step-by-step process to buy NSE unlisted shares

Choose an intermediary or platform: Register with a specialised unlisted-share platform or dealer offering NSE shares.

Complete KYC: Submit documents including PAN, Aadhaar, bank account details and the Client Master Report (CMR/CML) issued by your depository participant. The CMR contains details such as your demat account, DP ID, Client ID and linked bank account.

Check the quote and lot size: Unlike an exchange-traded stock, there is no central order book or exchange-determined price for NSE’s unlisted shares. Buyers and sellers negotiate the transaction price and quantity, with intermediaries facilitating the trade.

Place the order and make payment: Once the price and quantity are agreed upon, the buyer transfers funds through the payment channel specified by the platform, including UPI, NEFT, RTGS or a designated escrow account.

Complete the transfer documentation: Depending on the transaction, documentation may include the share purchase agreement (SPA), delivery instruction slip (DIS), proof of payment and transfer deed (SH-4).

Receive the shares in the demat account: Once the transaction is verified and the seller confirms the transfer, the shares are moved through an off-market transfer and credited to the buyer’s demat account through the depository system. The shares may typically be credited within 24 to 48 business hours, according to the details provided.

The two depositories, CDSL and NSDL, oversee the electronic transfer of shares. Proper documentation is critical to establishing the transfer of title, as unlisted transactions do not pass through the standard order-matching and settlement mechanism of a stock exchange.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)

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Investors may not have made much money from the secondary market in August, with Nifty falling 0.6% during the month. But IPO investors had a far better run, as most new listings delivered gains on debut and continued to trade above their issue prices.

Out of 17 IPOs that listed in August, 15 gave positive listing-day returns, translating into a hit rate of about 88%. The same number of issues are also trading above their issue price as of the latest available data, which means nearly 90% of August IPOs are still in the green.

The performance shows that the primary market remained strong even as the broader secondary market stayed selective. Investor appetite was healthy across sectors such as healthcare, logistics, engineering, dairy, energy, jewellery, industrials and consumer-facing businesses.

Tempsens leads gains

Tempsens Instruments was the standout listing of the month. The company doubled investor money on debut, making it the biggest winner among August IPOs. Among others, Dhoot Transmission delivered the strongest current return. The stock was issued at Rs 871 and is now trading at Rs 1,499, giving investors a gain of 72%. It had already listed strongly at Rs 1,187, a listing-day gain of 36%.
Technocraft Ventures was another big winner. The stock listed at around Rs 311 against an issue price of Rs 212, giving a listing gain of 47%. It is now at Rs 358, up 69% from the issue price. Behari Lal Engineering also rewarded investors sharply. The stock listed at Rs 502 against an issue price of Rs 285, a gain of 76% on listing day. It is currently at Rs 469, still up 64% from the IPO price.

Also Read: Reliance Jio IPO: 7 risk factors investors should know as firm gets Sebi nod for Rs 37,000-crore issue
Milky Mist Dairy Food gave investors both listing gains and follow-up gains. The stock listed at Rs 181 against an issue price of Rs 140, a gain of around 30%. It has since moved to Rs 217.31, taking total gains to 56%.MV Electrosystems was another strong performer. It listed at Rs 624 against an issue price of Rs 425, a gain of 47%, and is currently at Rs 646.8, up 52%.

Most IPOs hold gains

Several IPOs that listed with decent gains continued to trade above issue price. Molbio Diagnostics is currently trading nearly 42% higher over the issue price, while Shiprocket is still up 37%. Manipal Health Enterprises also held firm after listing. The stock was issued at Rs 590, listed at Rs 667 and is now at Rs 798, giving investors a gain of 35%.

Only two IPOs turn negative

Only two August IPOs are currently below their issue prices. Shankesh Jewellers listed with a small gain of 2%, but has slipped below issue price and is trading about 4% lower. Horizon Industrial Parks had a weak debut, listing 3% below issue price, and is currently down 5%.

September pipeline remains strong

The strong August report card comes just as the IPO pipeline is set to get heavier in September. Investment banking sources expect more than 20 companies to tap the market during the month, with the total fundraising pipeline potentially going up to Rs 70,000 crore if one of the two mega issues, Jio Platforms or NSE, is launched.

Jio Platforms has already received Sebi approval for its much-awaited IPO. The Reliance Industries-backed digital services company is expected to raise around Rs 37,700 crore, which could make it one of India’s largest-ever public issues. NSE is also likely to receive Sebi approval soon and may launch its IPO as early as September, according to people aware of the matter. The exchange’s tentative issue size is pegged at around Rs 30,000 crore.

The pick-up follows a busy July and August for the primary market. Companies raised about Rs 28,000 crore in July and more than Rs 23,000 crore in August, showing that issuers have returned after holding back during the volatile first half of the year.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)

This article was written by

Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of ALVO either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Seeking Alpha’s Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

Wall Street major Jefferies has slashed the target price of HDFC Bank shares to Rs 880 from Rs 1,050 per share, forecasting a fresh upside of 22% from current levels after the lender announced that its CEO Sashidhar Jagdishan won’t seek extension beyond his term that ends on October 26.

“We will watch out if this leads to an exit among senior leaders of the bank. This can impact business and performance in the near term,” analysts at the firm said.

The brokerage said its conversations with investors suggest they are comfortable with a leadership change, but believe the appointment of former leaders from PSU banks should be avoided as it could complicate the transition.

Also read: HDFC Bank shares after Jagdishan: What lies ahead for the country’s largest private lender?

Who can become new HDFC Bank CEO?

Jefferies sees Kaizad Bharucha, HDFC Bank’s Deputy Managing Director who leads corporate, business banking and retail assets, among others, as a key internal candidate for the CEO role.

The brokerage said Bharucha could be a simpler choice, with a potential tenure of 2.8-3 years, given that he was appointed Executive Director in June 2014. It believes one option for the bank could be to allow Bharucha to lead HDFC Bank while preparing for a smoother transition over the longer term.
Jefferies identified Anup Bagchi, currently CEO of ICICI Prudential Life and formerly an Executive Director at ICICI Bank overseeing retail banking; Paresh Sukthankar, former DMD at HDFC Bank who left in 2018; Vibha Padalkar, CEO of HDFC Life; Rajiv Sabharwal, CEO of Tata Capital; and Amitabh Chaudhry, CEO of Axis Bank, as potential external candidates.

Jefferies on HDFC Bank outlook

The brokerage has lowered its FY27-29 earnings estimates by 3% each. It does not see a risk to asset quality, noting that the bank has maintained high asset quality and that the book value of its exposure to the Essel group was nil at the time of the merger, with the claim including principal and interest.

Analysts say the uncertainty could raise the cost of equity and lead to a lower valuation, prompting it to base the revised target on 1.6x September 2028 adjusted price-to-book value. However, with HDFC Bank trading at 1.5x one-year forward price-to-book and 12x PE, the brokerage believes valuations are not as demanding.

The bank said in an exchange filing over the weekend that its board had tried to persuade Jagdishan to continue, but he remained firm on his decision not to seek re-appointment. HDFC Bank’s board has now decided to accelerate the process of identifying his successor, well within the timeframe stipulated by the regulator.

Read more: HDFC Bank shares gain 3% as CEO Jagdishan rejects new term; Morgan Stanley, Jefferies, others weigh in

Among the names being considered internally is current Deputy Managing Director Kaizad Bharucha, who has been with HDFC Bank’s board since 2014 and became Deputy MD in April 2023. However, the 15-year cap set by the Reserve Bank of India on the tenure of a Whole-Time Director at a private bank presents a limitation. Bharucha’s current term on the board runs until 2029.

HDFC Bank stock performance

The stock has remained under pressure this year. HDFC Bank shares have fallen 27.33% on a year-to-date basis and are down 24.80% over the past one year, according to NSE data. Over five years, the stock has declined nearly 6.97%.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times.)

MELBOURNE — Few founder stories in Australian digital marketing carry the weight of Harry Sanders’, who built StudioHawk from a one-person operation run by a homeless teenager into what has become the country’s largest dedicated search engine optimization agency. As the company marks its tenth year of operation, here is a closer look at its origins, its growth and the man who built it.

1. Sanders founded the company at 17, while living under a bridge in Melbourne.

Sanders’ path into the search engine optimization industry began years earlier than most. He taught himself SEO at age 13 in order to help promote his father’s small business, developing a foundational understanding of how search algorithms worked well before he had any formal business training. By the time he turned 17, Sanders had launched StudioHawk — during a period when he was homeless and living under a bridge in Melbourne, according to SmartCompany, which profiled the company as part of its Smart50 awards coverage.

That period of hardship has remained a defining thread in how Sanders talks about the company’s origins. He has said the challenges he faced during that time shaped him and fueled his passion for the industry he would go on to help define in Australia. Rather than distancing the company from that history, Sanders has built it into the core of StudioHawk’s public identity, frequently referencing the experience in interviews, speaking engagements and the company’s own marketing materials.

2. He remains an active advocate for youth homelessness.

Sanders has translated his personal history into ongoing philanthropic work. He serves as an ambassador for the Lighthouse Foundation, an Australian charity focused on supporting young people experiencing homelessness, and donates 100% of his speaking fees to the organization’s efforts to address the issue. The arrangement reflects a broader pattern in how Sanders has approached his public profile as StudioHawk has grown — using the platform the company has built to draw continued attention to an issue he experienced firsthand as a teenager.

3. StudioHawk has grown into Australia’s largest specialist SEO agency.

What began as a solo operation has expanded significantly over the past decade. Founded in 2015, StudioHawk now employs more than 120 SEO specialists across offices in Melbourne, Sydney, London and Atlanta, according to the company’s own profile on the review platform Clutch. The firm has built its growth strategy around specialization rather than diversification, structuring itself as a dedicated SEO and AI search agency rather than expanding into adjacent services like paid media or social media management — a deliberate positioning the company has said differentiates it from larger, full-service digital agencies.

That growth has translated into measurable financial gains. According to SmartCompany’s Smart50 rankings, StudioHawk’s revenue climbed from $5.3 million in the 2020-21 financial year to $8.7 million in the most recent year reported, a growth rate of more than 29%, while the company added 26 new employees over a single 12-month period. The agency’s client roster has come to include major Australian brands such as Ryobi, Vodafone and Officeworks, a list Sanders has attributed to the company’s straightforward strategy of delivering measurable results rather than relying on flashy marketing promises.

4. The company has collected a string of major industry awards.

StudioHawk’s growth has been accompanied by significant recognition within the digital marketing industry. The agency has been named a four-time winner of “Best Large SEO Agency” at the APAC Search Awards, alongside additional honors including Semrush’s Agency of the Year and Optus’s Media Marketing and Advertising Business of the Year. In one notable instance, the company took home the grand prize at the Global Search Awards, a competition judged by a panel that has included the head of digital at Samsung, the deputy general manager at Nissan Motors, HubSpot’s chief marketing officer and Lego’s global search marketing lead.

Sanders himself has drawn individual recognition as well. He has been named to Forbes’ 30 Under 30 Asia list and won B&T’s Entrepreneur of the Year award, in addition to accumulating more than 40 industry honors over the course of his career. Those accolades have positioned Sanders as one of the more prominent public figures in Australia’s digital marketing sector, a status he has used to expand his influence beyond StudioHawk itself.

5. Sanders holds industry leadership roles and has built additional ventures.

Beyond running StudioHawk day to day, Sanders sits on the board of the Australian Web Industry Association and holds status as a Google Partner Specialist, positioning him as an active voice in shaping broader industry standards rather than simply running his own agency. He has also branched into education, launching Hawk Academy, a training program the company says reaches thousands of students annually with instruction on SEO and AI search fundamentals.

Sanders has also diversified beyond the SEO industry entirely, co-founding a separate luggage brand called Kadi that emphasizes design and quality. The venture reflects a broader entrepreneurial pattern that has emerged as Sanders has moved from running a single-person operation to overseeing a multinational agency, using the platform and credibility built through StudioHawk to expand into adjacent business interests.

Looking ahead, StudioHawk has positioned itself to compete in an SEO landscape increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence and AI-driven search summaries, rebranding portions of its service offering around what the company describes as “AI Search” alongside traditional organic optimization work. That shift mirrors broader changes across the digital marketing industry, as agencies nationwide adapt their strategies to account for how consumers increasingly discover information through AI-generated answers rather than traditional search engine results pages.

For a company whose founder once had no permanent address, StudioHawk’s evolution into a firm with offices spanning four cities across two continents represents one of the more striking growth trajectories in Australian digital marketing — one that Sanders has continued to frame publicly not just as a business success story, but as evidence of what he has described as his belief that “most people overestimate what they can do in one year and underestimate what they can do in five.”