‘A divine sign’: NSE CEO Ashish Chauhan links Tirupati visit to SEBI’s signal for IPO approval
After years of regulatory scrutiny, the NSE reapplied for the NoC in August 2024, having addressed several outstanding issues. A major step forward came in October 2024, when the exchange settled the Trading Access Point (TAP) architecture and network connectivity case by paying a penalty of ₹643 crore.
- Jan 11, 2026,
- Updated Jan 11, 2026 2:06 PM IST
The long-awaited initial public offering (IPO) of the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) may be nearing a crucial breakthrough, with market regulator SEBI indicating that regulatory clearance could come as early as this month.
Ashish Kumar Chauhan, Managing Director and CEO of the NSE, on January 11 shared a personal note on X (formerly Twitter), linking his family’s pilgrimage to Tirupati with the recent positive signals from the regulator. Chauhan said he took the blessings of Lord Venkateshwara for the exchange, its employees, members, listed companies, stakeholders and investors.
“The pilgrimage was planned a while back. Hon’ble SEBI Chairman’s signal to give NSE IPO approval this month just as we reached Tirupati last evening, truly felt like a divine sign from the Almighty. A blessed pilgrimage!” Chauhan wrote.
His remarks come as the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) confirmed that it is at a “very advanced stage” of issuing a no-objection certificate (NoC) for the NSE’s IPO. SEBI Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said the approval process is close to completion, though he stopped short of giving a definitive date.
“It may be done within this month,” Pandey said, according to ANI, signalling that the long-pending regulatory clearance could finally be in sight.
The NSE has been seeking approval for its IPO for nearly a decade. The exchange first filed its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) in December 2016, but the plan was derailed following governance lapses and the co-location controversy, which alleged that certain brokers received preferential access to the exchange’s algorithmic trading systems.
After years of regulatory scrutiny, the NSE reapplied for the NoC in August 2024, having addressed several outstanding issues. A major step forward came in October 2024, when the exchange settled the Trading Access Point (TAP) architecture and network connectivity case by paying a penalty of ₹643 crore.
Pandey noted that since then, the NSE has undertaken multiple corrective measures, including changes in senior management, board restructuring, strengthening of compliance frameworks and resolution of past regulatory concerns.
The IPO proposal has faced repeated delays since 2016, with the exchange seeking the NoC multiple times — once in 2019, twice in 2020, and again in 2024 — as unresolved issues related to co-location and dark fibre access continued to hold up the process. With most of these concerns now addressed, regulatory clearance appears closer than ever.
The long-awaited initial public offering (IPO) of the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) may be nearing a crucial breakthrough, with market regulator SEBI indicating that regulatory clearance could come as early as this month.
Ashish Kumar Chauhan, Managing Director and CEO of the NSE, on January 11 shared a personal note on X (formerly Twitter), linking his family’s pilgrimage to Tirupati with the recent positive signals from the regulator. Chauhan said he took the blessings of Lord Venkateshwara for the exchange, its employees, members, listed companies, stakeholders and investors.
“The pilgrimage was planned a while back. Hon’ble SEBI Chairman’s signal to give NSE IPO approval this month just as we reached Tirupati last evening, truly felt like a divine sign from the Almighty. A blessed pilgrimage!” Chauhan wrote.
His remarks come as the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) confirmed that it is at a “very advanced stage” of issuing a no-objection certificate (NoC) for the NSE’s IPO. SEBI Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said the approval process is close to completion, though he stopped short of giving a definitive date.
“It may be done within this month,” Pandey said, according to ANI, signalling that the long-pending regulatory clearance could finally be in sight.
The NSE has been seeking approval for its IPO for nearly a decade. The exchange first filed its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) in December 2016, but the plan was derailed following governance lapses and the co-location controversy, which alleged that certain brokers received preferential access to the exchange’s algorithmic trading systems.
After years of regulatory scrutiny, the NSE reapplied for the NoC in August 2024, having addressed several outstanding issues. A major step forward came in October 2024, when the exchange settled the Trading Access Point (TAP) architecture and network connectivity case by paying a penalty of ₹643 crore.
Pandey noted that since then, the NSE has undertaken multiple corrective measures, including changes in senior management, board restructuring, strengthening of compliance frameworks and resolution of past regulatory concerns.
The IPO proposal has faced repeated delays since 2016, with the exchange seeking the NoC multiple times — once in 2019, twice in 2020, and again in 2024 — as unresolved issues related to co-location and dark fibre access continued to hold up the process. With most of these concerns now addressed, regulatory clearance appears closer than ever.