New Delhi, June 25 (IANS): The Centre has raised more than Rs 25,000 crore through stake sales in public sector undertakings (PSUs) via the Offer for Sale (OFS) route so far in 2026, marking the highest such fundraising exercise in over a decade, according to market data compiled by Prime Database. The data showed that the government mobilised around Rs 25,491 crore by diluting stakes in eight listed PSUs during the year, the highest amount raised through PSU OFS issues since 2015, when approximately Rs 35,291 crore was garnered through stake sales in five listed companies. Including private sector issuances, a total of 24 listed companies have raised about Rs 29,445 crore through the OFS route in 2026, already nearing the Rs 30,178 crore raised by 28 companies in 2024 and approaching the all-time high of Rs 35,566 crore mobilised by 19 firms in 2015. Among state-run firms that undertook stake sales this year are Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL), Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC), Central Bank of India, Coal India, NHPC, NLC India and General Insurance Corporation of India.
Analysts noted that PSU stocks have generally delivered a subdued performance following their OFS launches, amid volatility in domestic equity markets driven by foreign institutional investor outflows, geopolitical uncertainties and fluctuations in crude oil prices. They added that funds raised through stake sales could help the government meet higher expenditure requirements related to food, fertiliser and cooking gas subsidies. Among recently divested PSU stocks, BHEL has emerged as the strongest performer, trading around 62 per cent above its OFS floor price. In comparison, IRFC remains about 3 per cent below its February OFS floor price, while Central Bank of India has gained nearly 6 per cent since its May issue. Coal India and NHPC have risen roughly 9 per cent from their respective OFS floor prices, while NLC India and General Insurance Corporation of India have posted gains of around 1 per cent and 4 per cent, respectively.