HNI / NII (IPO Category)

Also known as: high net worth individual, nii, non-institutional investor, snii, bnii

HNIs (formally Non-Institutional Investors) are individuals bidding above ₹2 lakh in an IPO — the category gets ~15% of the issue, split between small NII (₹2-10 lakh) and big NII (₹10 lakh+). Unlike the retail lottery, NII allotment is also lottery-based post-2022 but with different lot mathematics, and many HNIs fund applications with short-term loans betting on listing gains — a strategy whose costs bite when GMPs fade.