drashti As it gears up for its much-anticipated stock market debut, the National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL) is wrapping up its financial year on a high note. The depository giant has reported a 4.77% year-on-year rise in consolidated net profit for the March quarter of FY25, clocking in at ₹83.3 crore — a modest but reassuring uptick from ₹79.5 crore in the same quarter last year. And while the numbers may not be setting the Dalal Street ablaze just yet, they do hint at quiet strength and strategic preparation.
Revenues too followed suit, rising by nearly 10% in Q4 to ₹394 crore, compared to ₹358 crore in Q4 FY24. But it’s the full-year figures that tell the bigger story. For the fiscal year ending March 2025, NSDL posted a 24.57% surge in net profit to ₹343 crore, with total income increasing by 12.41% to ₹1,535 crore. Solid growth for a company at the core of India’s financial infrastructure — and, as it turns out, on the brink of becoming publicly traded.
While NSDL is clearly enjoying some financial tailwinds, its plans for the IPO have undergone a bit of strategic trimming. As per its revised draft red herring prospectus, the depository has scaled down its IPO size from 5.72 crore shares to 5.01 crore shares. Perhaps less is more — especially when the issue is composed entirely of an offer-for-sale (OFS). In other words, NSDL itself won’t be pocketing any of the proceeds; the listing is more about unlocking value for its existing stakeholders.
Among those stakeholders are IDBI Bank and the National Stock Exchange (NSE), who together hold just over 50% of the company and have some regulatory math to do. As per SEBI’s guidelines, no shareholder can own more than 15% in a depository, and both IDBI (26.10%) and NSE (24%) must therefore reduce their stakes to comply. The listing, now granted an extended deadline of July 31, 2025, gives them ample time to tidy up their cap tables.
NSDL’s dividend announcement adds a sweetener to the mix — a final dividend of ₹2 per share for FY25, subject to shareholder nod. It’s a quiet way of saying, “We’re doing well, and we want you in on it.”
Beyond the financials, NSDL’s operational footprint continues to impress. The depository now boasts presence in over 99% of India’s pin codes, with a global reach extending to 186 countries and a domestic service network of over 63,000 centres across every state and Union territory. For a company that underpins so much of India’s capital market infrastructure, scale and trust are currency — and NSDL seems to be cashing in on both.
Once listed, NSDL will become India’s second publicly traded depository, joining CDSL, which went public in 2017. With regulatory compliance in motion, a healthy bottom line, and a clean structure for its IPO, NSDL looks poised to step confidently into the public markets — not with a bang, but with the quiet authority of a market backbone ready for its close-up.
