Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) emerged as the biggest sellers among anchor investors in initial public offerings (IPOs), leading to sharp price pressure around the 30-day unlock window, according to a study released by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on Tuesday.

The analysis analyzed 242 mainboard IPOs listed between April 2022 and October 2025. It found that smaller IPO issues experienced higher levels of anchor investor exits, while heavier anchor selling directly correlated with larger drops in stock prices.

Key findings from the 30-day unlock window analysis:

• In IPOs where more than 10 per cent of anchor holdings were sold, the average price impact was minus 3.5 per cent during the T+29 to T+33 window, with the median price impact at around minus 6 per cent.
• FPIs led this high-intensity selling bracket with an average exit of 24.5 per cent of their anchor allotment, compared to 23.1 per cent by corporates and 21.6 per cent by other Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIBs).
• IPOs with exits between 2.5 per cent and 10 per cent experienced an average price impact of minus 1.3 per cent, while issues with exits up to 2.5 per cent saw an impact of minus 0.4 per cent.
• Price pressure largely subsided by the 90-day unlock window, with all exit-intensity categories recording near-zero mean and median price movements.

The study also revealed that anchor selling persisted well past the regulatory lock-in periods. Aggregate weighted exits climbed steadily from 3.5 per cent at T+30 to 9.3 per cent at T+60, 18.5 per cent at T+90, 34.4 per cent at T+180, and reached 50.7 per cent by T+365.

Longer-term exit patterns by investor and issue size:

• FPIs offloaded approximately 60 per cent of their total anchor allotment by T+365, totaling shares worth around Rs 22,474 crore against an allotment of Rs 37,491 crore.
• Body Corporates sold 58 per cent, Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) sold 55 per cent, and other QIBs sold 46 per cent, whereas mutual funds recorded the lowest exit rate at 38 per cent by T+365.
• IPOs in the Rs 0-250 crore issue-size category experienced a 72.5 per cent exit rate by T+365, compared to 40.8 per cent for offerings in the Rs 1,001-2,500 crore range.

Sebi's findings highlight that anchor selling causes a temporary supply overhang primarily around the initial unlock window, with the overall market impact moderating over subsequent stages.