The Centre is exploring ways to revive the stalled privatisation of IDBI Bank, people familiar with the matter told ET. The choices include examining whether earlier rejected bids, from Prem Watsa-led Fairfax Financial Holdings and Emirates NBD, for their failure to hurdle the reserve price threshold could still be considered, they said.
The bids remain ‘alive’ and the government is examining legal provisions under the tendering framework that allows for bids to be accepted even if offers are below the reserve price, said the people cited above.
The reserve price remains undisclosed. A call is expected to be taken soon as the government looks at ways to bolster its non-tax revenues. A senior government official said that all options are on the table, as the process for selling its stake in IDBI Bank was never “scrapped” even after the financial bids were found to be below the reserve price. “Multiple options are being examined including how to complete the transaction in the ongoing round,” an official said. The government fixed the reserve price after bids were submitted by interested parties but before they were opened.
The reserve price remains confidential and has not been disclosed to bidders. The Centre may also seek guidance from, the Securities and Exchange Board of India, given the valuation concerns considering a very limited free public float, currently at 5.29%.
Low Public Float
“All these aspects are being examined,” said another official. In February 2026, Arunish Chawla, secretary, Department of Investment and Public Affairs, or DIPAM, had said in a post on X that financial bids had been received for the strategic disinvestment of the IDBI Bank.
“They will be evaluated as per the prescribed procedure,” he stated. But the stake sale process came to a halt in March after the bids received were found to be below the reserve price. IDBI’s share price then crashed from a 52- week high of Rs 118.45 to a 52-week low on March 30 at Rs 61.05 at the Bombay Stock Exchange, or BSE.
The stock gained some momentum in April and is currently trading at Rs 73.49 on the BSE. The government aims to sell its 30.48% stake and Life Insurance Corporation of India’s 30.24% stake in the bank. At the current market price, it will be able to raise around Rs 24,000 crore. The government has budgeted Rs 80,000 crore from asset monetisation in this fiscal.
As per the process, the successful bidder will have to go through a final assessment by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to ensure that it meets the regulator’s ‘fit & proper’ standards. In addition, approvals will be needed from statutory and regulatory authorities, including the Competition Commission of India. The successful bidder will also have to comply with the requirement to make an open offer to minority shareholders of IDBI Bank.
Source: Economic Times