Urban Company Makes Bumper Entry, Shares List At 58% Premium

Shares of Urban Company made a blockbuster debut on the bourses on September 17, listing at a hefty premium of nearly 58% against its IPO price. The stock opened at ₹162.25 on the NSE, comfortably above the issue price of ₹103, staging a debut that was aligned with market expectations.

The strong debut was hardly a surprise, given the grey market premium (GMP) had already signalled robust gains in the run-up to listing. Ahead of the debut, Urban Company shares were commanding a 50% premium in the unofficial grey market, a space where IPO shares are traded before their official listing. That sentiment translated into reality, fuelled by overwhelming investor demand and favourable market conditions.

The company’s ₹1,900-crore public issue turned out to be the most subscribed IPO of 2025, drawing bids 103.63 times the shares on offer during its September 10-12 subscription window. Qualified institutional buyers led the charge, subscribing 140.20 times their allotted quota. High-net-worth individuals came in at 74.04 times, retail investors at 39.25 times, while employees subscribed 36.79 times their reserved portion.

Despite being viewed as expensive on valuation metrics and hitting the market at a time of relatively subdued sentiment, Urban Company’s offering attracted investors.

“Given the high subscription levels and positive momentum, we anticipated strong listing gains in the 40–50% range, or even higher depending on market conditions on the day,” said Prashanth Tapse of Mehta Equities.

He added that while the listing pop is attractive, the longer-term story is equally compelling. “Urban Company represents a structural play on India’s growing demand for home services. For allottees, the advice is to hold with a long-term view. For those who missed out, it would be prudent to adopt a wait-and-watch approach before making fresh entries,” he said.

At the upper end of its price band, Urban Company commanded a valuation of ₹14,790 crore. The issue comprised a fresh issue worth ₹472 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of ₹1,428 crore by existing shareholders. Among those paring their stakes were Accel India, Elevation Capital, Bessemer India Capital Holdings II Ltd, Internet Fund V Pte. Ltd, and VYC11 Ltd.

The listing also provided partial exits to marquee early investors such as Accel, Elevation, and Tiger Global. The company, for its part, will channel proceeds from the fresh issue into marketing initiatives and technology upgrades, according to its prospectus.

Urban Company had already secured ₹854 crore from anchor investors prior to the IPO, attracting heavyweight names such as SBI Funds, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, HDFC Mutual Fund, Fidelity Securities, Nomura, ICICI Prudential Life, SBI Life, Citigroup and Goldman Sachs. Their early participation highlighted the confidence in the company’s prospects.