How to apply for an IPO in India

A valid PAN-linked Demat account with a depository participant (broker or bank). Your bank must support ASBA or UPI-based IPO bidding — most large Indian banks and brokers do.

A UPI ID linked to the bank account you want debited. Funds are blocked (not debited immediately) until allotment. Keep sufficient balance for the full bid amount at the upper price band.

Only one application per PAN per investor category. Duplicate retail bids are rejected. Joint holders should follow their broker's policy — typically one lead applicant per Demat account.

Read the DRHP/RHP on SEBI or exchange websites. Understand revenue drivers, debt, promoter holding, and stated use of IPO proceeds. Numbers on IPO GMP Track — GMP, subscription, dates — help you time the application but do not replace prospectus research.

Check lot size and minimum investment on our IPO detail page. SME IPOs often require ₹1 lakh or more per lot versus roughly ₹15,000 on many Mainboard issues. Ensure the blocked amount fits your budget across all IPOs you plan to apply for.

Note the bidding close date and apply early in the window. Last-day technical issues and missed UPI mandates are the most common reasons valid investors fail to get into the bid book.

Retail individual investors apply for up to ₹2 lakh per IPO in the retail quota. This bucket has a reserved portion of shares and uses lottery allotment when oversubscribed.

Applications above ₹2 lakh fall in the Non-Institutional Investor (NII) category, commonly called HNI in IPO discourse. NIIs are allotted on a proportionate basis within their quota — different maths than retail lottery.

Select the correct category before confirming. You cannot apply ₹1.5 lakh as retail and later add more in the same IPO under the same PAN. If you need a higher ticket, plan the full amount as HNI from the start.

Step 1 — Log into your bank's net banking or broker app and open the IPO / ASBA section. Active issues show open and close dates.

Step 2 — Select the IPO, enter the number of lots, and bid at cut-off price (recommended for retail). Cut-off means you accept the final discovered issue price within the band.

Step 3 — Confirm Demat linkage and submit. Your bank sends a UPI collect or mandate request — approve it on your UPI app before the IPO closes. Without approval, the application is incomplete.

Step 4 — Save the application number from the confirmation screen or SMS. You will need it to check allotment on the registrar website.

ASBA blocks the bid amount in your bank account — typically lot size × shares per lot × upper price band. The money stays blocked until allotment is processed.

If you are not allotted shares, the bank releases the block within a few working days. If allotted, the block converts to a debit and shares credit to your Demat before listing.

Blocked funds still count toward your account balance for some banks but cannot be withdrawn until released. Plan other payments accordingly during the IPO window.

While the IPO is open, monitor subscription rate and GMP on IPO GMP Track. Rising subscription tightens retail lottery odds even when GMP is attractive.

After the close date, wait for allotment on the registrar site (linked from our IPO page). See our allotment guide for PAN/application lookup steps.

On listing day, shares trade at market price. Listing gain can differ from last-day GMP. Decide in advance whether you intend to sell on debut or hold — both are valid strategies with different risk.

Missing UPI mandate approval — the single biggest avoidable error.

Applying above ₹2 lakh while intending to stay retail — misclassification can invalidate your bid.

Chasing every high-GMP IPO without reading the prospectus — high GMP often means low allotment probability.

Ignoring SME lot sizes — verify blocked amount before approving UPI.