The speculative frenzy surrounding India's small and medium enterprise (SME) initial public offerings has given way to widespread losses for retail investors.
A review of the market segment reveals that over 500 SME IPOs launched in the last ten years are currently trading below their issue price.
The damage is particularly acute among the most hyped listings: 46% of issues that attracted subscription multiples of 100 times or more are now trading at a discount to their offer price.
The damage is particularly acute among the most hyped listings: 46% of issues that attracted subscription multiples of 100 times or more are now trading at a discount to their offer price.
The segment, which operates under significantly lighter listing requirements than the mainboard, had previously drawn intense retail interest.
Bidding wars for companies with limited operational scale—such as regional motorcycle dealers and local flour mills—drove valuations to unsustainable levels.
The current repricing reflects a growing realization that the initial demand was driven more by speculative momentum than by fundamental business strength.