Sebi is set to clear the long-delayed IPO of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) by the end of this month, a move that could finally pave the way for India’s largest stock exchange to list after nearly a decade of regulatory hurdles.
Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said that the regulator is likely to issue a no-objection certificate (NOC) for NSE’s initial public offering within weeks. Speaking to the media in Chennai, Pandey said the remaining steps related to listing and the IPO process would then be handled by the exchange itself.
“We will give the NOC to NSE by this month end. Listing and other IPO-related procedures should be taken care of by them,” he said.
NSE’s IPO plans have been on hold for almost ten years due to multiple regulatory and governance issues. The exchange first filed its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) in December 2016, but the process was stalled after Sebi initiated action over allegations of preferential access to NSE’s algorithmic trading platform under the co-location system.
Since then, NSE has made several attempts to secure Sebi’s approval, but each time the proposal ran into procedural and regulatory roadblocks linked to governance lapses and technology-related concerns.
In recent years, the exchange has worked to resolve many of these issues. It settled key cases, including the Trading Access Point (TAP) architecture and network connectivity matter, by paying a penalty of Rs 643 crore, helping clear the way for regulatory approval.
Commenting on volatility in SME IPOs, Pandey said Sebi does not intervene in pricing or valuation. Instead, the regulator’s focus is on ensuring strong and transparent disclosures. He noted that Sebi has changed IPO advertisement norms to clearly indicate whether an issue belongs to the main board or the SME segment, making it easier for investors to understand the size and nature of the offering.
Pandey also said Sebi has removed nearly 1,00,000 videos by unregistered ‘finfluencers’ who were offering stock tips on social media. The regulator is using an AI-based tool called ‘Sudarshan’ to scan and monitor such content.
On the review of conflict-of-interest norms for Sebi members and officials, Pandey said the board discussed the issue in its December 2025 meeting and decided that further deliberations were needed, especially on broader public disclosure norms.
