On Tuesday, July 2, Indian benchmark indices experienced continued losses, with the BSE Sensex falling 168.95 points (0.20%) to 83,528.34, and the NSE Nifty 50 slipping 49.50 points (0.19%) to 25,492.30. This market downturn was primarily driven by weakness across key sectors including FMCG, banking, media, oil & gas, and realty stocks. Despite the broader market pressure, newly listed entities such as HDB Financial Services and Sambhv Steel managed to deliver strong listing gains, providing some positive momentum.

A significant event on the stock exchanges was the decent debut of HDB Financial Services Limited, a subsidiary of HDFC Bank, which listed on Wednesday, July 2, at nearly a 13 per cent premium. This reflected solid investor interest in its maiden public issue. On the National Stock Exchange (NSE), HDB Financial Services shares opened at Rs 835 apiece, marking a 12.84 per cent gain over its issue price of Rs 740. A similar performance was observed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), where the stock also debuted at Rs 835, translating to the same premium. Market analysts, including Zee Business Managing Editor Anil Singhvi, had earlier projected a listing in the range of Rs 800–820 per share, advising investors to apply for reasonable listing gains and to consider holding the stock for long-term wealth creation. Singhvi emphasized the consistent wealth creation potential of HDFC group stocks and expressed a bullish outlook on the Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) sector.

The initial public offering (IPO) of HDB Financial Services, which aimed to raise Rs 12,500 crore, concluded on June 27 as India’s largest-ever IPO by an NBFC. The offering saw an impressive subscription rate of 16.69 times on its final day of bidding, with bids received for over 217.66 crore shares against an offer size of 13.04 crore shares. This made it the most subscribed billion-dollar IPO since Zomato-parent Eternal’s public issue in 2021. Qualified institutional buyers (QIBs) led the subscription, bidding for over 55 times their reserved portion, while non-institutional investors subscribed 9.98 times, and the retail portion was subscribed 1.4 times. The IPO was open from June 25 to June 27 and consisted of a fresh issue of shares worth Rs 2,500 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of Rs 10,000 crore by HDFC Bank, which holds a 94.3 per cent stake in HDB Financial Services. The IPO’s price band was set between Rs 700–740 per share, with a minimum application size of 20 shares (Rs 14,800).

The net proceeds from the fresh issue of HDB Financial Services’ IPO are earmarked to bolster the company’s Tier-I capital base. This strategic move aims to support HDB’s future capital requirements across its key verticals, including Asset Finance, Consumer Loans, and Enterprise Lending, while also ensuring compliance with the Reserve Bank of India’s latest capital adequacy guidelines. As part of its broader growth strategy, HDB Financial is actively expanding its asset portfolio. Founded in 2007, HDB Financial Services Limited operates as a retail-focused NBFC and is a key subsidiary of HDFC Bank. It offers a comprehensive suite of financial products, such as personal loans, auto loans, gold loans, and consumer durable loans. Additionally, HDB provides crucial business process outsourcing (BPO) services, including back-office support, collections, and sales support to HDFC Bank, along with fee-based services like insurance distribution. The company employs a