Sebi Study: Anchor Investors Exit Smaller IPOs Faster
By IPO Desk
A Sebi study on 242 IPOs reveals anchor investors exit smaller issues at higher rates post-lock-in. Learn about the trends and implications for investors.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has revealed that anchor investors tend to divest a significantly higher proportion of their holdings in smaller Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) once lock-in periods expire. This finding comes from a comprehensive Sebi study of 242 mainboard IPOs listed between April 2022 and October 2025.
Understanding Anchor Investor Exits
The study established a clear inverse relationship: the smaller the IPO, the sharper the anchor investor exits. Specifically, issues with an issue size of up to ₹250 crore experienced the most pronounced selling activity.
Following the initial 30-day unlock, these smaller IPOs saw a 9.1 percent exit rate. This rate escalated to 20.3 percent after 60 days and reached 32.4 percent after 90 days. Over a longer horizon, within 365 days, the sub-₹250 crore category recorded a substantial 72.5 percent exit, significantly surpassing the 40.8 percent observed in larger IPOs ranging from ₹1,001-2,500 crore.
Behaviour in Larger IPOs
Conversely, larger IPOs demonstrated considerably lower exit rates from anchor investors. The weighted aggregate exit was only 3.2 percent after the first unlock, increasing to approximately 8 percent by 60 days. After the 90-day unlock, this figure stood at 17.3 percent.
This data indicates that while some selling occurs post-lock-in, a significant portion of anchor allocations is often retained beyond these initial exit windows in larger offerings.
Market Impact and Key Contributors
Sebi’s analysis also identified a negative correlation between the intensity of anchor selling and the stock’s price performance around the first unlock window. However, this price impact was more subdued around the 90-day unlock period.
Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) were the primary drivers of exits in stocks experiencing over 10 percent selling during the first unlock window, averaging 24.5 percent of exits. Mutual Funds (MFs), by contrast, showed a lower average exit rate of 11.5 percent.