How to Apply for an IPO Using UPI and ASBA: Complete Guide for Indian Investors
By IPO Plus
How to apply for an IPO using UPI and ASBA: Complete guide for Indian investors. Learn step-by-step process, eligibility, and tips for IPO application.
How to Apply for an IPO Using UPI and ASBA: Complete Guide for Indian Investors
Key Takeaways
- UPI is a trigger mechanism layered on top of ASBA, and both routes ultimately block funds in the investor's own bank account rather than debiting money upfront.
- Applying for an IPO using UPI requires a linked UPI ID, a broker's trading app, and prompt approval of the mandate request within the given time window.
- Net banking ASBA lets investors apply directly through their bank's SCSB portal without needing a UPI app at all.
- Common issues like missing mandates, insufficient balance, or PAN mismatches can usually be fixed by resubmitting the bid before the IPO closing time.
- Unsuccessful IPO applicants get their blocked funds released automatically, typically within one working day of allotment finalisation, with no manual refund process required.
What Are UPI and ASBA in the IPO Application Process?
What Is ASBA and How Does It Work?
Learning how to apply for an IPO using UPI and ASBA is essential for every Indian investor, because SEBI mandates that all retail IPO bids must be backed by a blocked-funds mechanism rather than an upfront debit. ASBA (Application Supported by Blocked Amount) and UPI (Unified Payments Interface) are the two authorised routes that make this blocking possible, and most retail investors today use UPI layered on top of the ASBA framework through their broker's trading app.
ASBA is a SEBI-mandated facility that blocks the bid amount in an investor's own bank account instead of debiting it immediately when an IPO application is submitted. The money stays in the investor's account and continues to earn interest until shares are allotted, at which point only the exact allotted amount is debited; any unallotted portion is simply unblocked with no refund delay. ASBA was originally submitted through net banking or physical forms at a bank branch, and it remains the underlying settlement mechanism even when an investor applies via UPI.
What Is UPI-Based IPO Application and How Is It Different from ASBA?
UPI-based IPO application is essentially an ASBA transaction where the blocking instruction is triggered through a UPI mandate instead of a net-banking authorisation. When an investor bids for an IPO through a broker's app using a UPI ID, the broker forwards that bid to the exchange, which in turn sends a mandate (payment request) to the investor's UPI app such as BHIM, Google Pay, or PhonePe. The investor approves this mandate, and the bid amount is blocked in their bank account, functioning exactly like ASBA but with a faster, app-based approval step.
Retail investors need both UPI and ASBA because UPI is only the trigger mechanism, while ASBA is the regulatory framework that actually blocks the funds in the bank account. In practice this means an investor selects UPI as the payment mode inside their broker's app, but the money is still blocked using ASBA rules, so no separate ASBA application is needed when applying through a broker with UPI enabled. Investors who prefer not to use UPI can still complete the entire process through net banking ASBA directly on their bank's website, without touching a broker's UPI flow at all.
Why Do Investors Need Both UPI and ASBA to Apply for an IPO?
How to Apply for an IPO Using UPI (Step-by-Step)
How to Register Your UPI ID Before Applying for an IPO
Applying for an IPO using UPI involves creating a UPI ID linked to a bank account, entering that ID in the broker's IPO application form, and approving a mandate request to block the bid amount. The entire process typically takes only a few minutes and can be completed from a smartphone without visiting a bank branch.
Before applying for an IPO, an investor must have an active UPI ID such as name@upi linked to the bank account that holds sufficient funds for the bid, created through any UPI app including BHIM, Google Pay, PhonePe, Paytm, or a bank's own app. It is important to use a UPI ID linked to the same bank account that will be used for the IPO application, and the bank should be on the list of UPI-enabled banks published by NPCI, since not every bank supports UPI mandates for IPO blocking.
How to Submit an IPO Bid Through Your Broker's App Using UPI
To submit an IPO bid using UPI, an investor logs into their broker's trading app or website, navigates to the IPO section, selects the open issue, and enters details including the number of lots, the bid price or cut-off option, and their Demat account number along with the PAN linked to it. After filling in the bid details, the investor enters their UPI ID in the designated field and submits the application; the broker then forwards the bid to the stock exchange's IPO bidding platform, which routes a block-fund mandate request to the investor's UPI app.
Once the mandate request appears, the investor must open their UPI app, review the amount and IPO name shown in the request, and approve it using their UPI PIN before the mandate expires, which is usually within a set window on the bidding day. Approving the mandate blocks the exact bid amount in the investor's bank account rather than debiting it, and the investor should always verify the payee name and amount match the IPO applied for before entering the UPI PIN, since approving an unfamiliar or mismatched mandate can lead to blocked funds for the wrong transaction.
How to Approve the UPI Mandate Request to Block Funds
How to Apply for an IPO Using ASBA Through Net Banking
How to Apply for an IPO via Net Banking ASBA
Applying for an IPO via net banking ASBA means logging into a bank's internet banking portal, locating the ASBA or IPO application section, and submitting the bid directly with the bank acting as the Self-Certified Syndicate Bank (SCSB). This route does not require a UPI app at all and is commonly used by investors who prefer to complete everything within their bank's own website.
To apply through net banking ASBA, an investor logs into internet banking, goes to the ASBA or IPO applications menu (the exact label varies by bank), selects the live IPO from the list, and enters the number of shares or lots along with the bid price or cut-off price. The bank displays the total application amount, and once the investor confirms, the bank blocks that amount in the linked savings account instantly, generating an application number that can later be used to track allotment status.
What Documents and Details Are Required for an ASBA Application?
An ASBA application requires a valid PAN, a Demat account number, a bank account held with an SCSB registered with SEBI, and sufficient clear balance to cover the bid amount at the time of submission. No physical documents or photocopies are needed for online ASBA, since the process is fully digital, though first-time investors should ensure their PAN is linked to both their Demat account and their bank account to avoid mismatches that can cause rejection.
Many stockbrokers also route ASBA applications through their trading platforms, where the investor selects ASBA (instead of UPI) as the payment mode, chooses their SCSB bank from a dropdown list, and is then redirected to that bank's net banking login to authorise the block. This broker-assisted ASBA route is useful for investors who manage multiple IPO bids from one dashboard but still want the fund-blocking to happen directly through their bank rather than a UPI mandate.
How to Apply for an IPO Through Your Broker Using ASBA
What Are the Common Issues While Applying for an IPO via UPI or ASBA?
Why Is My UPI Mandate Request Not Showing Up?
The most common issue while applying for an IPO through UPI or ASBA is a delayed or missing mandate notification, which usually results from network congestion on the bidding day rather than an error in the application itself. Investors should always check both the UPI app's notification tab and the requests or collect section manually, since push notifications can be delayed or blocked by phone settings.
If a UPI mandate request does not appear within 30 to 60 minutes of submitting a bid, an investor should open the UPI app directly and check the pending requests section instead of waiting for a push notification, since apps like Google Pay and PhonePe often list pending collect requests separately from alerts. If the request still does not appear, the investor should verify that the UPI ID entered in the broker's application exactly matches the one linked to their bank account, and if needed, re-submit the bid with the correct UPI ID before the IPO closing time.
What Should You Do If Your IPO Application Fails or Gets Rejected?
An IPO application can fail or get rejected for reasons including insufficient funds at the time of mandate approval, a mismatch between the PAN on the Demat account and the bank account, an expired UPI mandate that was not approved in time, or bidding at a price below the floor price of the issue. When an application fails, investors should check the application status on the registrar's website or the broker's app, correct the underlying issue such as low balance or PAN mismatch, and resubmit the bid within the IPO's bidding window, since most exchanges allow multiple bid revisions until the issue closes.
Investors can modify the bid quantity, price, or category, or cancel the application entirely, at any point before the IPO bidding window closes, typically by 5:00 PM on the closing day, using the same broker app or net banking portal used to apply. Modifications made through UPI require approving a fresh mandate for the revised amount, while the earlier mandate is either automatically cancelled or simply lapses, and cancellations release the blocked funds back to the investor's available balance usually within one working day.
How to Modify or Cancel an IPO Application Before Allotment?
How to Check IPO Allotment Status After Applying via UPI or ASBA?
How to Check Allotment Status Using PAN or Application Number
IPO allotment status can be checked on the registrar's website, such as Link Intime or KFin Technologies, or on the BSE and NSE websites, by entering either the PAN number or the application number along with the IPO name. Allotment status is usually published on the registrar's site within one to two working days after the IPO closes, and platforms like IPO Plus also track allotment updates alongside subscription figures and grey-market premium data for the same issue.
What Happens to Blocked Funds If You Don't Get Allotment?
If an investor does not receive allotment, the blocked funds are automatically unblocked and released back to their available bank balance, typically within one working day of the allotment finalisation, without requiring any action from the investor. Because ASBA and UPI both use a blocking mechanism rather than an upfront debit, unsuccessful applicants never experience a refund delay the way they would under older payment-first IPO application methods.
Is UPI or ASBA Better for Applying to an IPO?
Neither UPI nor ASBA is universally better, since both ultimately rely on the same ASBA fund-blocking framework; the real difference lies in speed and convenience, with UPI generally offering a faster, app-based mandate approval while net banking ASBA suits investors who prefer applying directly through their bank without a UPI app. Investors bidding close to the IPO closing deadline often prefer UPI for its quicker mandate turnaround, while those applying early in the bidding window may find net banking ASBA equally convenient.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between UPI and ASBA for IPO applications?
ASBA is the SEBI framework that blocks IPO bid funds in an investor's bank account, while UPI is simply the payment mode used to trigger that block through a mandate approval on a UPI app; UPI applications are still processed under ASBA rules.
Can I apply for an IPO without using UPI?
Yes, an investor can apply for an IPO entirely through net banking ASBA using their bank's internet banking portal, without creating or using a UPI ID at all.
How long does a UPI mandate take to appear after submitting an IPO bid?
A UPI mandate request usually appears within a few minutes to about 30-60 minutes after submitting an IPO bid, though delays can occur due to network congestion, especially on the last day of bidding.
What happens if I don't approve the UPI mandate in time?
If the UPI mandate is not approved before it expires, the IPO application is treated as incomplete and no funds are blocked, so the investor must resubmit the bid and approve a fresh mandate before the issue closes.
Is my money debited immediately when I apply for an IPO via ASBA?
No, ASBA only blocks the bid amount in the investor's bank account; the money continues to earn interest and is debited only if shares are allotted, with any unallotted amount unblocked automatically.
How do I check my IPO allotment status after applying via UPI or ASBA?
Allotment status can be checked on the registrar's website, such as Link Intime or KFin Technologies, or on the BSE/NSE website, by entering the PAN number or IPO application number.
Can I modify or cancel my IPO application after submitting it?
Yes, an investor can modify the bid quantity, price, or category, or cancel the application entirely, at any point before the IPO bidding window closes, typically by 5:00 PM on the closing day.