Indian companies have raised ₹5,394 billion through initial public offerings between 2020 and 2025, surpassing the ₹4,558 billion raised over the previous 20 years from 2000 to 2020, according to data released by Equirus Capital on Tuesday.
The surge in capital raising was achieved with just 336 IPOs during 2020-2025, compared to 658 issues in the two preceding decades. The average IPO size increased significantly to ₹1,605 crore in the recent five-year period from ₹692 crore between 2000 and 2020.
Bhavesh Shah, Managing Director and Head of Investment Banking at Equirus Capital, attributed the growth to larger deal sizes and increased acceptance of Offer for Sale transactions, which have enabled private equity funds to secure exits and allowed promoters to partially monetise their holdings.
Private equity exit activity has accelerated, with secondary sales doubling from 7 per cent of total PE exits in 2024 to 16 per cent in the first 10 months of 2025. Block deals, while still dominant, declined from 67 per cent to 56 per cent during the same period.
Equirus forecasts $20 billion in IPO issuances for calendar year 2026, driven by strong investor appetite for new-age companies, larger benchmark-setting IPOs and increased participation from tier-2 and tier-3 cities. Companies from these smaller cities now account for over 25 per cent of IPO values, up from just 4 per cent in 2021.