Ahmedabad-based Boss Packaging Solutions, a business with 64 employees and a shabby 500 square yard office as seen on X (formerly Twitter) gets a jaw-dropping 135x IPO subscription, with bids worth ₹1,073 crore, and goes hot on the heels of Resourceful Automobile’s IPO frenzy.
This is despite market regulator Sebi warning investors on potential manipulation being seen in some SME IPOs, advising investors not to fall for social media tips or rumours.
What does Boss Packing Solutions do?
The company, with an issue size of just a little over ₹8 crore, supplies machines for packaging, labelling, capping, and filling.
However, in terms of financials, its profits remained flat for both 2022-23 and 2023-24, and has also seen a sharp rise in debt, going up 82% to ₹3.06 crore in 2023, compared to ₹1.64 crore during the previous year, according to its RHP.
What has led to the SME IPO craze?
The BSE SME IPO index skyrocketed 136% this year, dwarfing the Sensex’s 14% climb. However, a Moneycontrol report attributes this to hype generated by social media buzz and paid influencer promos.
This year has seen at least five SME IPOs with subscriptions of around 1,000 times. This demand is primarily from retail investors. But when it comes to subscriptions from retail investors alone, over half a dozen SME IPOs saw retail investor subscriptions go more than 1,000 times.
