NSE Managing Director Ashish Chauhan has urged startups and MSMEs to use public markets as a growth tool, saying listings help founders raise capital while retaining control of their businesses. (A file picture) | Photo Credit: BIJOY GHOSH

Public listing allows founders to raise growth capital while retaining control of their businesses, National Stock Exchange (NSE) Managing Director and Chief Executive Ashish Chauhan said on Friday, urging startups and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to use capital markets to scale their businesses.

Speaking at the JITO Incubation and Innovation Foundation’s (JIIF) Foundation Day event, Chauhan said entrepreneurs usually turn to banks or private investors for capital. While banks and private investors may want a say in the business, public markets allow founders to raise money while continuing to remain in control.

Listing helps founders retain control and unlock capital

“When you list, you keep 75 per cent with yourself and offer 25 per cent to the market in the beginning. You can give more later. Control stays with you,” Chauhan said.

Listing not only helps companies raise money but also gives the business greater visibility, attracts analyst coverage, improves credibility with lenders and customers, and helps attract talent. Compliance requirements also increase after listing, but founders should not see that as a burden as long as the business functions fairly, he said.

Public markets offer valuation and expansion opportunities

Public markets reward profitable businesses with a valuation that private balance sheets cannot match, he said. A company earning an annual profit of ₹2 crore could command a market capitalisation of ₹40 to 50 crore once listed, giving the promoter room to raise capital, bring in partners and expand operations.

He also described a listed share as a company’s own currency. It can be used to acquire businesses, bring in partners, pledge shares to raise funds and reward employees through stock options. He cited Infosys’ early use of employee stock options to attract talent.

Focus on business fundamentals, not stock movements

At the same time, Chauhan asked founders not to get distracted by daily stock price movements. “Your business is in your operations, not in the share price. The stock market is only a reflection of your business, it is not the business itself,” he said, adding that share prices follow sustained growth in profit.

Generating trading volume is not the company’s responsibility but rather that of a market-maker, which provides two-way quotes for three years for SME companies, he said.

While SME business models carry higher risk than those of larger main-board companies, Chauhan said investors in the segment understand the risk-reward trade-off and that well-run SME companies can scale quickly.

NSE SME platform crosses major milestones

The JIIF chairman, Jeenendra Bhandari, said, “For too long, our MSMEs and founders have seen public listing as a distant ambition rather than a practical tool for growth. The truth is that listing offers growth capital, sharper governance and lasting credibility, while leaving control firmly with the promoter. What matters is building a profitable, durable business; the share price will follow.”

Companies listed on the NSE’s SME platform since its launch in 2012 have collectively raised more than ₹21,700 crore and have a combined market capitalisation of more than ₹2 lakh crore, he said.

The remarks come days after NSE filed its draft red herring prospectus for an offer-for-sale of 14.89 crore equity shares or nearly 8 per cent of its shareholding for its long-awaited initial public offering.

Published on June 26, 2026