Yes Bank FPO: Anchor demand indicates Rs 15,000 crore a tall ask for lender

LIC, SBI asked to chip in to meet demand shortfall, says sources

Allotment made to ‘anchor investors’ ahead of an initial or follow-on public offering (IPO or FPO) is to demonstrate strong demand for shares among institutional investors. However, the underlying message from Yes Bank’s anchor allotment is that raising Rs 15,000 crore could be a tall ask.

For one, the shares had to be allotted at the lower end of the price band of Rs 12 to Rs 13 per share. Despite that, the amount available under the anchor category remained undersubscribed. Also, domestic mutual funds (MFs)—which tend to corner large portion of shares in the anchor book—have conspicuously stayed away.