Bharat Coking Coal Ltd’s initial public offering (IPO) saw strong demand from investors from the moment bidding opened on Friday, with the issue getting fully subscribed within minutes. According to NSE data till 11:15 am, bids were received for 84,15,46,800 shares, far exceeding the 34,69,46,500 shares on offer, resulting in an overall subscription of 2.43 times. Interest was strongest in the non-institutional investors’ segment, which was subscribed 3.79 times. Retail individual investors followed closely with 3.35 times subscription, while the qualified institutional buyers’ portion saw 1% subscription.Ahead of its public issue, Bharat Coking Coal Ltd (BCCL) has raised more than Rs 273 crore from anchor investors, the company said on Thursday. The IPO, which has a grey market premium of 43.5%, is a Rs 1,071-crore issue and will remain open for subscription until January 13. The price band for the issue has been set at Rs 21 to Rs 23 per share. At the upper end of the band, the company’s valuation works out to more than Rs 10,700 crore. As per the red herring prospectus, the issue is entirely an offer for sale of 46.57 crore equity shares by parent company Coal India, with no fresh equity being issued. The proposed listing of BCCL is part of the government’s wider divestment drive in the coal sector, aimed at unlocking value in Coal India’s subsidiaries and bringing in greater transparency through market participation. In its prospectus, the company said the IPO would help it realise the advantages associated with being a listed entity. Incorporated in 1972, Bharat Coking Coal Ltd is engaged in the mining and supply of coking coal, with its operations primarily located in the Jharia coalfields of Jharkhand and the Raniganj coalfields of West Bengal. The offering comes amid a strong rush for India’s primary markets. In 2025, companies raised nearly Rs 1.76 lakh crore through IPOs, marking a record year. This surpassed the Rs 1.6 lakh crore raised by 90 companies in 2024 and the Rs 49,436 crore mobilised by 57 firms in 2023, supported by strong domestic liquidity, steady investor sentiment and a favourable macroeconomic environment.