IPO categories: retail, NII (HNI) and QIB

An IPO's shares are divided into portions for different kinds of investors, and each portion is subscribed, and allotted, separately.

The three main categories

QIB (qualified institutional buyers) are institutions such as mutual funds, insurers and foreign portfolio investors. NII (non-institutional investors), also called HNI, are individuals and entities applying for more than ₹2 lakh. Retail investors are individuals applying for up to ₹2 lakh.

A common split of a book-built mainboard issue is up to 50% for QIBs, at least 15% for NIIs and at least 35% for retail, though some issues differ. NII applications are further split into those between ₹2 lakh and ₹10 lakh and those above ₹10 lakh.

Reserved portions

Some issues set aside shares for the company's employees or shareholders, or, for insurers, policyholders. These are applied for separately, often at a small discount, and an investor can apply in them as well as in retail.

Why each category's subscription matters

Each category is subscribed independently. Retail subscription is the one that decides your odds as a retail applicant: a retail portion subscribed 5 times means roughly 1 in 5 applications is allotted. QIB bids usually arrive on the last day, so the final day's numbers can look very different from earlier ones.

IPO Khata shows overall subscription and the figure for each category on every IPO's page, with a chart of how they changed day by day.

One application per PAN, per category

You may apply once in each category you qualify for, with your own PAN. Several applications from one PAN in the same category are rejected.

Related guides

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Information, not investment advice. GMP is an unofficial grey-market indicator; figures come from public sources (InvestorGain) and may be late or wrong. Not registered with or affiliated to SEBI, the exchanges, the registrars or InvestorGain.