India’s IPO market witnessed one of its busiest months in August 2025, as 43 companies raised ₹17,252 crore across the mainboard and SME exchanges despite global trade wars and geopolitical uncertainties. I
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Notwithstanding the trade war with the US and geopolitical tensions, August turned out to be one of the busiest months for the primary market with 43 companies tapping the mainboard and SME exchanges to raise fresh capital of ₹17,252 crore.
The sentiments in the initial public offering market were boosted by ample liquidity in the system and an increasing risk appetite among investors.
SME IPOs rise 6% with record 28 issues; mainboard sees 15
Despite the tightening of regulations by the capital market regulator, SEBI, the funds raised through the SME exchanges increased by 6 per cent in August to ₹1,345 crore, up from ₹1,274 crore in July. The number of issues was also the highest so far this year, at 28, compared to 24 in July.
Similarly, the number of IPOs on the main board was up to 15 in August, against 13 in the previous month, even though the funds raised were lower at ₹15,907 crore (₹16,126 crore).
215 IPOs in 2025 so far
So far in 2025, there have been 215 IPOs. Of this, 162 were on the SME platform and 53 on the main board.
The pipeline of IPOs remains robust with Groww, Tata Capital, Zepto, PhonePe, Hero FinCorp and FabIndia waiting in the wings.
Analysts predict SME IPO bull run to continue 18–24 months
Kush Gupta, Director, SKG Investment & Advisory, said the bullish trend in the IPO market will continue as India has a lot of credible businesses in the SME space that are now getting an opportunity to go public. There is a huge tail that will hold the SME IPO spree for 18-24 months.
Last year, he said that of 151 IPOs that were oversubscribed by 100 times, 141 of them were SMEs.
However, in these volatile times, investors should conduct their due diligence before deciding to invest in SME IPOs, he added.
Retail, FPIs fuel IPO momentum; boost for startup ecosystem
Shravan Shetty, Managing Director, Primus Partners, said the current bullish trend in the primary market should continue, given the renewed interest from retail investors and FPIs (Foreign Portfolio Investors).
Shetty said the current trend, if sustained, can also help the start-up ecosystem by enabling venture capital funds and private equity to more quickly churn their investments and redeploy them in other businesses.
SMEs tap IPO market amid tougher bank and PE funding
Bipin Bhanushali, President (Investment Banking), Marwadi Chandarana Group, said that many SMEs are tapping the IPO market, as funding through traditional sources, such as banks and private equity, is hard to secure.
Although regulations have been tightened recently, the SME board still has relatively lighter compliance and disclosure norms compared to the main board, besides receiving faster clearances, he added.
Some of the SME IPOs are niche, with high-growth potential and solid business models backed by the credibility of reliable promoters, though there are some deadwood companies that spoil SME platform offerings, he said.
Published on August 30, 2025