NSE Denies Ashish Chauhan Speculation Over Tata Sons Chairman Position

The National Stock Exchange has cleared the air around speculations about its Managing Director and CEO Ashishkumar Chauhan being considered for the position of Chairman of Tata Sons. NSE said the reports were “not based on any information available with the Exchange” and that Chauhan had categorically denied them.

The clarification came in response to a September 5 media report suggesting Chauhan as a potential candidate for the top position at Tata Sons. Meanwhile, Chauhan, said in an email to the exchange that the reports linking him to the Tata Sons chairman position were “entirely baseless, speculative and factually incorrect”.

Chauhan said that he was committed to NSE and was focusing on the upcoming listing of the exchange. “I am fully committed to working closely with the Board and its shareholders to achieve the successful listing of the company and other associated objectives,” Chauhan said.

The exchange is is targeting a listing in the week starting September 21, according to agency reports. The IPO will be entirely an offer for sale (OFS), with existing shareholders offering up to 14.89 crore equity shares, representing nearly 6% of NSE's paid-up capital. There is no fresh issue, meaning NSE itself will not raise fresh funds or expand its balance sheet through the public issue. Instead, existing institutional backers such as State Bank of India and Bank of Baroda—are offloading parts of their holdings to the public.

SBI Group is the largest selling shareholder and will offer up to 2.475 crore shares. Other major sellers include MS Strategic (Mauritius) Ltd, which will sell up to 1.60 crore shares; Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) with 1.19 crore shares; Aranda Investments (Mauritius) Pte Ltd with 1.12 crore shares; Bank of Baroda with around 1.10 crore shares; and Stock Holding Corporation of India Ltd with around 1.09 crore shares.