Meesho IPO Soared 46%. So Did 150 Others Before They Crashed!

E-commerce platform Meesho's shares debuted with a spectacular 46% premium on December 10, listing at ₹162.50 on the NSE against its issue price of ₹111, as per BSE data. Retail investors who secured allotments booked instant gains of ₹6,952 per lot, while the company's market capitalization crossed ₹77,000 crore.

Okay, does this call for celebrations? Not really. Why? Consider this sobering statistic: according to Bloomberg, almost half of the more than 300 companies that listed in 2025 are now trading below their offer prices.

The Meesho IPO, which reportedly raised ₹5,421 crore through a combination of fresh issue and offer-for-sale, attracted massive interest with 79.03 times oversubscription. Qualified institutional buyers led the charge with 120.18 times oversubscription, followed by non-institutional investors at 38.16 times and retail participants at 19.08 times, according to exchange data.

Half of 2025's IPOs Are Already Underwater

While the 46% listing gain appears impressive, exceeding the weighted average first-day pop of 31% for 2025 IPOs, as per Prime Database, it masks a deeper malaise in India's primary markets.

The country witnessed record capital mobilization of ₹1.77 lakh crore through IPOs this year, according to market data. Yet investor returns tell a different story.

As per Bloomberg Intelligence, around 40% of IPO-debuting companies and 50% of qualified institutional placement-listed firms are now trading below their issue prices. Companies that listed at premiums have seen their gains evaporate, while those that debuted at discounts have plunged further.

Remember Paytm? Things Went Wrong Fast

The pattern is clear: initial euphoria followed by brutal reality. Take Paytm, India's largest IPO at ₹18,300 crore in November 2021. The digital payments giant listed at ₹1,950, a 9% discount to its issue price of ₹2,150, according to BSE data. As of December 11, 2025, Paytm shares trade at approximately ₹1,300, still 40% below the IPO price three years later.

Contrast this with Zomato, which listed in July 2021 at ₹115 against an issue price of ₹76—a 51% premium, as per NSE records. After weathering significant volatility and touching lows of around ₹40, Zomato shares currently trade near ₹287, delivering multibagger returns to patient investors who held through the turbulence.

Meesho's ₹77,000-crore Problem

The SoftBank-backed company finds itself in an uncomfortable middle ground. According to its IPO prospectus filed with SEBI, Meesho reported losses of ₹3,941 crore in FY25 against revenue of ₹9,900 crore, a loss that widened dramatically from ₹327 crore the previous year. While the company reduced losses to ₹700 crore in the six months ending September 2025, it remains deeply unprofitable.

At a market capitalization exceeding ₹77,000 crore, Meesho trades at a high single-digit price-to-sales multiple despite never turning a profit. The company operates in an intensely competitive space, facing pressure from Amazon, Flipkart, and the rapid rise of quick commerce platforms like Blinkit and Zepto.

For investors holding Meesho shares, the 46% listing gain is merely the start. The real question is whether this becomes a Zomato-style recovery story or a Paytm-style value destruction.

Several factors will determine the trajectory: the company's ability to narrow losses while maintaining growth, competitive positioning in tier 2 and tier 3 cities where it claims dominance, and execution on its AI and technology investments funded by the IPO proceeds.

As per the Red Herring Prospectus, the company plans to deploy ₹1,390 crore toward cloud infrastructure, ₹480 crore for AI and machine learning teams, and ₹1,020 crore for marketing initiatives.

Whether these investments translate into sustainable profitability or merely extend the cash burn remains to be seen.

As India's IPO market enters 2026 with a robust pipeline, according to merchant banking sources, the Meesho IPO's post-listing performance will serve as a crucial test case. In a market where half the listings have failed to hold their value, the burden of proof rests squarely on the company to justify its premium valuation in the quarters and years ahead.

(yMedia is the content partner for this story)