Centre to sell up to 6% stake in Bank of Maharashtra via OFS for ₹2,500 cr

New Delhi, Dec 1 2025

The Centre plans to offload up to a 6 per cent stake in the Bank of Maharashtra (BoM) this week through an offer for sale (OFS), the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) said on Monday. The sale opens for non-retail investors on Tuesday, while retail investors can place bids on Wednesday.

The base offer comprises 384.6 million shares, with an additional 76.9 million shares available under the green-shoe option, taking the total to 461.5 million shares or 6 per cent of the stake of the Pune-based lender.

“Offer for sale in BoM opens tomorrow for non-retail investors. Retail investors can bid on Wednesday. Government offers to disinvest 5 per cent equity in the bank with an additional 1 per cent as a green-shoe option,” DIPAM Secretary Arunish Chawla said in a post on X.

The base price per share has been fixed at Rs 54. Based on the current market price, the stake sale could fetch roughly Rs 2,500 crore for the government. BoM’s share closed at Rs 57.7 on Monday, down 1.54 per cent, giving the lender a valuation of Rs 44,350 crore.

The Centre currently holds 79.60 per cent in the BoM. A successful sale will bring its shareholding below 75 per cent, enabling the bank to meet the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s (Sebi) minimum public shareholding requirement of 25 per cent.

Sebi’s Securities Contract (Regulation) Rules mandate that all listed companies, including those in the public sector, maintain a minimum public shareholding of 25 per cent. The deadline for compliance has been set at August 2026.

BoM is among five state-owned lenders where the Centre’s holding remains above the prescribed limit. The others include Indian Overseas Bank (94.6 per cent), Punjab & Sind Bank (93.9 per cent), UCO Bank (91 per cent) and Central Bank of India (89.3 per cent).

[The Business Standard]