NSE IX Marks Historic Milestone with First Foreign Listing in Gift City

GIFT City's First Foreign Equity Listing Marks a Milestone for NSE IX

GIFT City's first foreign equity listing of Ellinas Finance, a Cyprus-based company, marks a significant milestone for the NSE International Exchange (NSE IX) in building an international fundraising ecosystem alongside India's domestic markets. This development assumes immense importance as India's International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) framework allows Indian companies to undertake a separate float through GIFT City for international investors, potentially opening an additional overseas fundraising avenue without shifting their primary domestic market presence.

Connecting the Dots

According to V Balasubramaniam, MD and CEO of NSE IX, the next major step for scaling dual and cross-border listing structures would be depository connectivity. "The next big thing which we need to enable dual listing and cross-border listings in a meaningful way will be for the depositories to connect," Balasubramaniam noted, while highlighting that the exchange already has operational links with global settlement infrastructure such as Euroclear and Clearstream.

Read also: Market Analysis: Key Stocks to Watch - Narayana Hrudayalaya, ABB India, Federal Bank, Premier Energies, Ather Energy and More

A Complementary Product

Balasubramaniam stressed that NSE IX does not view itself as competing with India's onshore exchanges. "But I will say NSE International Exchange does not want to compete with the Indian domestic exchanges. So we do not want to cannibalise their flow," he said. "What we are talking about is only expanding. We are talking about a complementary product."

A Bright Future Ahead

Read also: FirstClub Secures $55 Million in Funding from Peak XV, Sofina, and Other Investors 9 Months After $22 Million Series A Round

The listing of Ellinas Finance follows an MoU signed between NSE IX and the Cyprus Stock Exchange during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Cyprus in June 2025. "Within 11 months we got the first listing coming through," Balasubramaniam said. "Cyprus is a gateway to the European Union and companies there are looking at India."

According to Balasubramaniam, the listing demonstrates that GIFT City can now emerge as a viable international fundraising venue. "I think what we have seen today is probably just a milestone, a red letter day, that this was achievable sooner than expected. Similar kind of a story could really happen with GIFT City."

A Broader Vision

Balasubramaniam linked the development to the broader vision laid out during GIFT City's early years: "When the Prime Minister inaugurated GIFT City around 10 years back, he had given two clear messages. One was that India should become price setters instead of hedging happening offshore in Singapore and other markets. The second was that GIFT City should become a fundraising destination not only for companies in Asia but also in Europe and Africa."

According to him, the first objective has already started materialising in derivatives markets. "In terms of volumes as compared to the domestic market on the Nifty benchmark, GIFT Nifty is already two times the Indian volume and in terms of open interest we are almost three times," he said.

"Effectively now international investors have clearly chosen this as the preferred venue as far as hedging needs are concerned."

A Gradual Build-Out

Balasubramaniam said interest from foreign firms is steadily rising as India's investor base deepens. Even though GIFT City had been aiming for a foreign listing since 2023, the eventual execution in 2026 does not undermine the significant interest being drawn by this space. "I've had talks with probably dozens of companies across geographies and they are all keen and watching. There are also foreign-owned companies with significant operations in India which definitely want to look at NSE International Exchange and GIFT City as the right listing venue because they could actually raise money from Indian investors," Balasubramaniam said.

At the same time, he said that the ecosystem is already more operationally prepared than many assume. "We were the first ones to do a connect with an international exchange. That infrastructure we have shown, demonstrated, built and scaled up. We are not only just talking, we are also walking the talk."