Meesho IPO: Grey Market Buzz Hints at Strong Debut
The grey market is buzzing with anticipation for Meesho's initial public offering, with the Grey Market Premium (GMP) currently standing at a solid ₹29. This positive sentiment suggests a robust premium ahead of the issue's opening on Wednesday, December 3. Based on the upper end of the IPO price band and this premium, the estimated listing price for Meesho shares is indicated at ₹140 per share, which is a significant 26.13% higher than the IPO price of ₹111.
IPO Structure and Key Dates
Meesho's maiden public offering is set to conclude on Friday, December 5. The process will kick off with allocations for anchor investors on December 2. The issue size is strategically reserved for different investor categories, with 75% allocated to qualified institutional buyers (QIBs), 15% for non-institutional investors (NIIs), and 10% for retail investors.
The IPO itself comprises a fresh issue of shares worth ₹4,250 crore, coupled with an offer for sale (OFS) of 10.55 crore shares. At the highest price, the OFS is estimated at ₹1,171 crore, bringing the total combined issue size to a substantial ₹5,421 crore.
Meesho's Market Position and Financial Health
Co-founded by Vidit Aatrey and Sanjeev Kumar, Meesho has established a formidable presence in the Indian e-commerce landscape. The company asserts that it holds the top position in terms of order volume and annual transacting users among Indian e-commerce firms for the twelve months ending September 2025, as highlighted by Redseer.
During FY25, Meesho's platform was a hive of activity, linking more than 500,000 transacting sellers with a massive 199 million annual transacting users. This ecosystem facilitated a staggering 1.8 billion orders.
A key performance indicator, the Net Merchandise Value (NMV), witnessed a healthy 29% year-on-year increase, reaching ₹29,988 crore in FY25. This follows a 21% growth recorded in FY24. In e-commerce, NMV represents the total checkout value of successfully delivered orders and is a fundamental gauge of platform performance and customer adoption.
However, from a profitability standpoint, the company recorded a net loss of ₹3,942 crore for FY25. It is important to note that this was mainly due to a one-off exceptional item, which included reverse flip tax and perquisite tax required for the company's crucial shift to a public structure.
Use of Proceeds and Competitive Landscape
Meesho has outlined clear plans for the capital raised from the IPO. The funds are earmarked for strategic investments in cloud infrastructure, enhanced marketing and branding efforts, and supporting inorganic growth through acquisitions. The remaining proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes.
The offer for sale (OFS) will see several of Meesho's early investors, including Elevation, Peak XV, Venture Highway, and Y Combinator, among others, divesting a portion of their equity shares.
Meesho steps into the public markets amidst a competitive field of publicly listed peers. Its competitors include names like Eternal (P/E ratio of 529.14x), Swiggy, Brainbees Solutions, Nykaa (P/E ratio of 1,168.43x), Vishal Mega Mart (P/E ratio of 99.53x), Trent (P/E ratio of 100.87x), and DMart (P/E ratio of 98.43x), setting the stage for an interesting market dynamic.
