2021 witnessed the highest amount of money ever raised in a calendar year through initial public offerings. Sixty three companies hit the market, and we are still not done. Here is the lowdown on the primary market in 2021.
How much money was raised?
Rs 1.18 lakh crore, a record. To put that number in perspective, it is a little over three times the country’s healthcare budget for 2021.
How much of this was through fresh issue of shares?
Roughly, Rs 43,000 crore. That is six times the average for the last five years
And the rest?
Around Rs 75,000 crore was through sale of shares by existing shareholders. This huge number did spark off a debate about IPOs turning into a channel for early investors to exit, rather than a source of cheap funds for companies.
Is that a bad thing?
In the past too, offer for sale constituted a major portion of the funds raised through IPOs. In 2021, 63 percent of the funds raised were through the offer for sale route, compared to an average of 77 percent for the last five years (check table).
| Year | Fresh capital (Rs crore) | Offers for sale (Rs crore) |
| 2016 | 9,176 | 17,318 |
2017 | 11,680 | 55,468 |
| 2018 | 7,444 | 23,515 |
2019 | 2,960 | 9,402 |
| 2020 | 3,531 | 23,082 |
2021* | 43,328 | 75,394 |
The star performers of 2021
| Company | % gain over issue price |
MTAR Tech | 296% |
| Paras Defence | 283% |
Nureca | 252% |
| Laxmi Organic | 208% |
Easy Trip | 179% |
| Macrotech | 162% |
Laggards among IPOs in 2021
| Company | % loss over issue price |
| Suryoday SFB | 51% |
| CarTrade | 47% |
| Windlas Biotech | 42% |
Fino Payments | 38% |
| Paytm | 37% |
New age businesses in 2021
| Company | % change over issue price |
| Nykaa | 91% |
| Zomato | 75% |
PB Fintech | 1% |
| Paytm | -37% |
CarTrade | -47% |
IPOs expected in 2022