IPOs open now, and what is coming next

Yes. Allotment moves shares into a Demat account, so the registrar needs an account number before it can credit anything. Without one your application is rejected at verification. You need the account before you apply, not before listing day.

No. Grey market premium is quoted by traders outside the exchanges, nobody regulates it, and it carries no obligation to trade. It has run far above the eventual listing price on some issues and collapsed entirely on others. We publish it because applicants ask for it, not because it predicts anything.

One lot at the upper end of the price band, held in your bank account until allotment. Multiply the lot size by the cap price to get the figure, and the issue page shows that calculation for you. The block is released if you are not allotted, and the brokerage on an IPO application is ₹0.

You can apply once per PAN per investor category. Two applications from the same PAN in the same category are both rejected as duplicates, even if they come from different brokers. Applying as both a retail investor and a non-institutional investor is allowed where you qualify for both.

The blocked amount is released, and it never leaves your bank account in the first place. Under ASBA the bank blocks the funds rather than transferring them, so a refund is an unblock. The issue page lists the refund initiation date when the registrar has announced it.

SME issues list on the SME platform of an exchange, and the minimum application is larger because the lot size is set higher. They typically raise less money and trade with far lower liquidity after listing, which makes an exit harder. The subscription mechanics are the same.