NSE Q3 net profit falls to Rs 2,408 crore; PAT up 15%, total income rises 6% QoQ

India’s largest stock exchange, the National Stock Exchange (NSE), reported a sharp 37% year-on-year decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 2,408 crore for the third quarter, even as it marked an important regulatory milestone with the receipt of SEBI’s no-objection certificate (NOC) for its long-awaited initial public offering (IPO).

Total income for the quarter fell 9% year-on-year to Rs 4,395 crore, primarily due to lower transaction charges. However, on a sequential basis, NSE’s performance showed improvement, with profit after tax rising 15% quarter-on-quarter and total income growing 6%, supported by higher trading volumes.

This was the first set of financial results announced by NSE after securing SEBI’s NOC for its IPO, ending a decade-long regulatory overhang.

Revenue pressure

NSE’s overall revenue growth during the quarter was impacted by a decline in transaction charges, which fell 12% year-on-year to Rs 3,033 crore. The drop reflected softer activity compared to the high base of the previous year.

On a sequential basis, however, transaction revenue rose 9%, aided by a pickup in volumes across the equity cash market and derivatives segments.

Operating performance also weakened on an annual basis. EBITDA declined 16% year-on-year to ₹2,851 crore, while operating margins slipped to 73%, reflecting the impact of lower revenue and operating leverage.

Other revenue streams offered some support. Revenue from data feed and terminal services jumped 17% year-on-year to ₹121 crore, while listing services revenue rose 11% to ₹111 crore, highlighting the growing contribution of non-transaction income.

IPO plans

Last Friday, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) granted a formal no-objection certificate to NSE to proceed with its IPO, bringing an end to prolonged delays stemming from governance issues and the co-location controversy.

According to reports, the proposed IPO is likely to be a pure offer for sale (OFS) by existing shareholders and could hit the markets within the next seven to eight months. NSE’s board is expected to constitute a specialised committee to oversee the listing process. The committee will define listing procedures and set criteria for appointing merchant bankers and legal advisors to prepare the Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP).

The IPO is expected to be among the largest in India’s capital markets. NSE currently has around 1.77 lakh shareholders and is estimated to be valued at over Rs 5 lakh crore in the grey market, according to analysts.

A decade-long wait

NSE’s listing plans have been on hold since 2016, when the exchange first filed draft offer documents to raise around Rs 10,000 crore through an offer for sale. SEBI withheld approval at the time due to regulatory concerns linked to governance lapses and allegations of unfair market access through the co-location facility.

The exchange has since approached the regulator multiple times seeking clearance. A key breakthrough came last month when SEBI Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said the regulator had granted in-principle approval to NSE’s settlement application in the co-location case, a move widely seen as clearing the path for the IPO.

NSE filed its settlement plea in June 2025 and later offered to pay Rs 1,388 crore to settle the charges related to the unfair access case.

NSE Managing Director and CEO Ashish Kumar Chauhan had earlier described the in-principle approval as a positive signal, noting that once the NOC was received, the exchange would begin preparations for filing the DRHP. He had indicated that filing the DRHP could take up to four months, followed by regulatory review.

With the NOC now in hand, NSE’s long-delayed listing appears firmly back on track, even as near-term financial performance reflects moderation from last year’s elevated levels.