As NSE gears up for its long-awaited IPO after filing its Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) with Sebi, the exchange is on track to deliver what could be the biggest listing in India's capital market history, with the issue expected to be around Rs 30,000 crore.

While much of the attention has centred on the selling shareholders, their extraordinary returns and the sheer size of the proposed offering, the DRHP reveals an interesting trend that has largely gone unnoticed.

According to the filing, BSE has 5,955 companies listed exclusively on its platform as of FY26, nearly double NSE's 2,978 listed companies. Despite having significantly fewer listed companies, NSE has outperformed its rival across most major operating and trading metrics.

However, it is important to note that BSE has a significantly higher concentration of microcap companies than NSE, which makes the gap in listed company count appear larger. Most mid-cap and large-cap stocks are listed on both exchanges. Moreover, the number of actively traded stocks on BSE is estimated to be in the range of 4,000.

How do NSE numbers stack up?

According to SEBI data, NSE maintained its dominant position across key trading segments in Fiscal 2026. In the cash market, the exchange commanded a 92.99% market share, with total turnover of Rs 260.63 lakh crore compared with the industry's overall turnover of Rs 280.26 lakh crore.

NSE's dominance was even more pronounced in equity futures, where it accounted for 99.79% of industry turnover. The exchange recorded equity futures turnover of Rs 393.82 lakh crore, against the industry's total turnover of Rs 394.67 lakh crore.

In equity options, NSE held a 74.71% share of industry premium turnover. The exchange reported premium turnover of Rs 142.42 lakh crore, while the industry's total premium turnover stood at Rs 190.65 lakh crore.

On the trading activity front, NSE's average daily trading volume (ADTV) in the cash market stood at Rs 1.06 lakh crore in FY26, sharply higher from BSE's Rs 79,500 crore, according to the DRHP.

According to Prabhudas Lilladher, BSE and NSE delivered cash market turnover CAGR of 14% and 11%, respectively, between FY21 and FY26. Despite BSE's faster growth, NSE continued to dominate the segment with a market share of 93%, compared with BSE's 7%.

According to the World Federation of Exchanges, NSE retained its position as the world's largest equity derivatives exchange, with more than 36.99 billion contracts traded during Fiscal 2026, including activity on NSE International Exchange (NSEIX). As of March 31, 2026, it was also the largest exchange in India by cash market turnover and the third largest globally by number of trades in cash equities.

BSE making strides

While NSE remains the clear market leader, BSE has been steadily gaining ground in the equity derivatives segment. According to Prabhudas Lilladher, BSE's share of index options premium turnover rose sharply from 3.7% in FY24 to 14.1% in FY25 and further to around 28% by the end of FY26.

The exchange also posted strong gains in index options notional turnover. After averaging around 24% during April-November 2024, BSE's market share increased to 30% in December 2024 and further to 42.4% in FY26.

The brokerage noted that BSE's derivatives ecosystem continued to expand, with approximately 10.4 million unique client codes (UCCs) and 586 trading members active on the platform as of FY26.

NSE market share gains

As of Fiscal 2026, the company maintained leading market share positions across key asset classes in India. NSE held a 92.99% market share in the cash market based on total turnover, 99.79% in equity futures based on total turnover, and 74.71% in equity options based on premium turnover.

The exchange also commanded 99.48% market share in exchange-traded currency futures based on total turnover and 100% market share in exchange-traded currency options based on total premium turnover.

NSE Vs BSE financials

The exchange reported revenue from operations of Rs 16,601 crore, more than three times BSE's Rs 4,834 crore. Transaction charges, typically the largest source of revenue for stock exchanges, contributed Rs 13,057 crore for NSE compared with Rs 3,795 crore for BSE.

NSE reported total income of Rs 18,713 crore and profit after tax of Rs 10,302 crore during FY26. In comparison, BSE reported total income of Rs 5,148 crore and profit after tax of Rs 2,487 crore.

NSE also maintained stronger profitability metrics. Its operating EBITDA margin stood at 66.9%, marginally higher than BSE's 64%, while PAT margin came in at 51% compared with 48% for BSE.

NSE IPO details

The proposed IPO is entirely an offer-for-sale (OFS) of up to 14.89 crore equity shares with a face value of Re 1 each, representing nearly 6% of NSE's paid-up equity capital. The issue size has been fixed at 6% of the exchange's paid-up capital.

NSE's shares will be listed on BSE, mirroring the arrangement under which BSE's own shares are listed on NSE.

The IPO filing marks the culmination of a process that began in December 2016 when NSE first filed a DRHP for a Rs 10,000 crore issue. The listing plan was subsequently delayed due to the co-location controversy.