SBI Funds IPO jackpot turns 13 employees into crorepatis; top ESOP haul hits Rs 121 crore

Years of employee stock ownership at SBI Funds Management are set to translate into multi-crore fortunes as the country's largest asset manager debuts in the stock market. At the IPO issue price of ₹574 a share, 13 employees hold equity stakes worth more than ₹1 crore, with Deputy Managing Director Devinder Pal Singh emerging as the biggest beneficiary with shares valued at about ₹121 crore, according to the company's prospectus. Srinivasan Rama Iyer, the fund house's Chief Investment Officer, follows with a stake worth about ₹105 crore.

Shares of SBI Funds Management made their D-Street debut today, listing at a 7% premium to the IPO price. The stock opened at Rs 610 on the BSE, up 6.27% over the issue price of Rs 574. On the NSE, it debuted at Rs 613.30.

Which SBI Funds employee making how much in IPO?

Singh's 21.14 lakh vested shares are valued at about ₹121 crore at the IPO price. He also holds unvested options that could be worth roughly ₹30 crore if exercised in the future. Iyer's 18.25 lakh vested shares are worth around ₹105 crore, while his remaining unvested options carry an indicative value of about ₹51 crore at the IPO price.


Among the other senior executives set for sizeable gains are Chief of Strategy, Digital & Technology and Head of Investor Relations Srinivas Jain, whose vested holdings are worth nearly ₹59 crore; Chief Investment Officer – Fixed Income Rajeev Radhakrishnan at around ₹36 crore; Chief Risk Officer Aparna Nirgude at about ₹31 crore; and Chief Compliance Officer, Company Secretary and Head of Legal Vinaya Datar, whose vested shares are valued at approximately ₹21 crore.

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The list also includes senior executives across finance, human resources, technology and fund management, including Chief Financial Officer Inderjeet Ghuliani, Chief Human Resources Officer Rajat Grover, Chief Information Security Officer Sanjay Pugaonkar, and fund managers Mohan Lal and Mahesh Chhabria, each holding vested stock worth more than ₹1 crore at the offer price.

The wealth creation underscores the payoff from SBI Funds' employee stock ownership programme, which granted options to senior executives years before the company moved toward a public listing. While the value of vested shares alone has created crorepatis across the senior management ranks, several executives also continue to hold unvested stock options that could further increase their holdings over time.

The ESOP scheme, first introduced in 2018 and subsequently amended, granted options at exercise prices ranging from around ₹39 to ₹455 a share. With the IPO priced at ₹574 per share, those options have generated substantial gains for employees who remained with the company through its growth phase.

Heavy demand for SBI Funds shares

The listing comes after strong institutional interest in the offering. A day before the issue opened, SBI Funds raised nearly ₹2,663 crore from anchor investors, with participation from 129 marquee investors like BlackRock and Goldman Sachs. The company had also completed a pre-IPO placement of around ₹1,880 crore.

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Investor demand remained robust throughout the three-day subscription window. The IPO was subscribed nearly 42 times between July 14 and July 16, led by qualified institutional buyers whose quota was subscribed about 140 times. The non-institutional investor portion was subscribed 22.51 times, while the retail category was subscribed 3.6 times.

Brokerages have largely backed the offering, citing the company's market leadership and asset-light business model.

Anand Rathi said SBI Funds operates a fee-based asset management business spanning mutual funds, portfolio management services, alternative investment funds, specialized investment funds and advisory mandates across equity, debt, hybrid, passive and overseas products. At the upper end of the price band, the brokerage noted the company is valued at 38.1 times earnings and recommended investors subscribe to the issue.

Chola Securities said SBI Funds enjoys a structural advantage through parent State Bank of India's extensive branch network, large customer base and brand recognition, particularly in Beyond Top 30 cities, aiding customer acquisition and asset mobilisation. The brokerage said the IPO is fairly valued at about 38 times FY26 earnings compared with listed peers including HDFC AMC, ICICI Prudential AMC and Nippon Life India AMC, while also assigning a "Subscribe" rating.

The IPO is entirely an offer for sale, meaning the company will not receive any proceeds from the issue. Instead, the listing provides an opportunity for existing shareholders while also crystallising years of employee wealth creation through one of the country's most valuable ESOP programmes in the asset management industry.

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