[Update] PhysicsWallah IPO: Issue Subscribed 7% On Day 1 

Update | November 11, 17:53 PM

PhysicsWallah’s (PW) IPO saw muted demand on the first day of its opening. The company’s issue attracted 1.31 Cr bids on day one against the 18.62 Cr shares on offer, translating to a mere 7% subscription of the company’s public float. 

Retail investors (RIIs) placed the highest 1.1 Cr bids on day one against the 3.37 Cr shares reserved for them. This translated to a 33% subscription of their quota. 

Non institutional investors (NIIs) placed the second highest bids for 12.55 Lakh shares against the 5.06 Cr shares earmarked for them, translating to a mere 2% subscription of their quota. The interest from qualified institutional buyers (QIBs) was the most muted, with these investors placing bids for only 6,302 shares against the 10.12 Cr shares reserved for them.

Meanwhile, PW’s employees subscribed their quota on day one, placing bids for 8.36 Lakh against the 7.53 Lakh reserved for them. This translated to a 1.11X oversubscription of their quota. 

Original | November 11, 11:29 AM

Edtech unicorn PhysicsWallah’s IPO saw a muted start on Day 1, with the issue subscribed 5% by 12:57 IST. It received bids for 87.68 Lakh shares against 18.62 Cr shares available for subscription.

Retail individual investors’ (RII) segment saw the highest interest with 22% subscription. The retail investors placed bids for 75.44 Lakh shares against 3.37 Cr shares on offer.

The employees’ category was subscribed 69%, getting bids for 5.19 Lakh shares as against 7.52 Lakh shares reserved.

The non-institutional investors’ (NII) portion was subscribed 1%, getting bids for 7.03 Lakh shares against 5.05 Cr shares reserved. Meanwhile, qualified institutional buyers (QIBs) didn’t place any bids.

PhysicsWallah has set a price band of INR 103 to INR 109 per share for the issue. The IPO will remain open for subscription till November 13, and the company’s shares are expected to list on the bourses on November 18. 

The public issue comprises a fresh issue of up to INR 3,100 Cr and an OFS component of up to INR 380 Cr. 

The edtech unicorn plans to use INR 1,088 Cr from the proceeds to expand its offline network by setting up new coaching centres and managing leases. It has earmarked INR 710 Cr for advertising and brand building. 

At the upper end of the price band, the company is seeking a valuation of INR 31,169 Cr (about $3.5 Bn), roughly 25% higher than its last round. Cofounders Alakh Pandey and Prateek Maheshwari, who held a cumulative 80% stake pre-IPO, will together offload shares worth INR 380 Cr. 

Among the institutional investors, PE firm WestBridge is one of the largest investors in the company with a 6.4% stake. Its affiliate entity Setu AIF Trust owns another 1.39% stake. Hornbill Capital holds 4.42% stake, while GSV Ventures’ shareholding stands at 1.79%. VC firm Lightspeed holds 1.79% stake in PhysicsWallah. 

The edtech unicorn raised INR 1,562.8 Cr from anchor investors yesterday by issuing 14.33 Cr shares at INR 109 apiece. 

On the financial front, the company posted a net loss of INR 125.5 Cr in Q1 FY26, up 78% YoY, while operating revenue grew 33% YoY to INR 847 Cr.