Ola Electric, the first automobile manufacturer to go public in nearly two decades, saw significant investor interest in its initial public offering (IPO), which closed with a subscription rate of 4.27 times the number of shares on offer.
The public issue, which opened on August 2 and closed on August 6, attracted bids for a total of 198.79 crore shares compared to the 46.51 crore equity shares available.
The IPO, valued at INR 33,522 crore, includes a fresh issue of shares worth INR 5,500 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) component of 8.49 crore shares.
Priced between INR 72 and INR 76 per share, the company could raise over INR 6,145.6 crore if the shares are allotted at the upper end of the price band.
Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIBs) were the most enthusiastic, bidding for 134.03 crore shares, resulting in an oversubscription of 5.31 times their allocated portion.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were particularly active, bidding for 82.42 crore shares, while mutual funds subscribed to 41.44 crore shares.
Retail investors showed strong participation as well, with their portion oversubscribed by 3.92 times.
They placed bids for a total of 33.24 crore shares against the 8.48 crore shares available.
Non-Institutional Investors (NIIs) subscribed to 2.4 times their allocated 12.72 crore shares, submitting bids for 30.49 crore shares.
Interestingly, Ola Electric’s employees showed exceptional interest in their reserved portion, which was oversubscribed by 12 times.
Employees bid for 1.01 crore shares, significantly surpassing the 8.46 lakh shares available.
Despite the high level of interest, some brokerages have raised concerns regarding the company’s ongoing operating losses, though they acknowledged Ola Electric’s potential in the growing EV sector.
Ola Electric’s IPO stands out with its relatively lower subscription rate compared to recent high-profile startups.
For instance, ixigo’s IPO was oversubscribed 98 times and Awfis saw 108 times subscription
