Startups shelled out ₹474cr in banker fees for IPOs last week

Business Nov 18, 2025

Four big startups—Lenskart, Groww, PhysicsWallah, and Pine Labs—just dropped a massive ₹474 crore on merchant banking fees to get listed on the stock market.
Altogether, their IPOs raised over ₹21,000 crore.
Groww led the pack in spending, handing over more than ₹151 crore just in banker fees.

Where all that money went

Lenskart and Pine Labs paid about ₹128 crore and ₹104 crore each for their IPO banking help, while PhysicsWallah spent nearly ₹90 crore.
Most of these costs—around 55%—went straight to merchant bankers; the rest covered things like regulatory and advisory fees.
Turns out, digital-first companies like these usually end up paying a bigger chunk of their IPO budget on such fees compared to traditional firms.