Cube Highways Trust files preliminary documents for Rs 5,000-cr IPO

New Delhi, Mar 18 (PTI) Cube Highways Trust, an infrastructure investment trust (InvIT), has filed preliminary papers with markets regulator Sebi to raise Rs 5,000 crore through its initial public offering (IPO).

The proposed IPO is entirely an Offer-for-Sale (OFS), where its current shareholders will sell their existing units to new investors.

“Cube Highways Trust (Trust) is a privately listed infrastructure investment trust and is proposing conversion from a privately listed infrastructure investment trust to a public InvIT through an Offer-for-Sale of units aggregating up to Rs 5,000 crore," according to the documents filed on Tuesday.

Under the OFS, Cube Highways and Infrastructure II, Cube Highways and Infrastructure III, Cube Mobility Investments, BCI IRR India and Seventy Second Investment Company will offload units.

Cube Highways Trust implements the public-private partnership model in the country’s highways sector to operate and manage highway projects in association with the central and state governments. Its asset under management (AUM) stood at Rs 36,520 crore as of September 2025.

The InvIT is backed by Squared Capital, an arm of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), British Columbia Investment Management Corporation, Abu Dhabi’s sovereign investor and Mubadala Investment Company.

The conversion to a public InvIT will help Cube Highways Trust to have access to a broader and more diversified investor base beyond private capital. Additionally, it will open additional pools of capital from select mutual funds, insurance companies and pension funds, whose participation in privately listed InvITs has historically been limited due to liquidity considerations.

As of September 2025, the Trust operates 27 road assets across 12 states and one union territory, out of which 18 are toll roads, 6 are hybrid annuity models, and 3 are annuity assets. These assets include 9 Build, Operate, Transfer (BOT) and Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer (DBFOT) assets, 9 Toll, Operation, Maintenance and Transfer (TOT) assets.

Before the offer’s completion, the Trust will acquire four additional highway and tunnel way project SPVs through swap transactions, increasing the portfolio to 31 road assets totaling 9,811 lane kilometers.

Kotak Mahindra Capital Company, HDFC Bank, HSBC Securities and Capital Markets (India) Private Ltd, and JM Financial are the book-running lead managers for the offer, and Axis Trustee Services is the trustee.

Earlier this month, state-owned National Highways Authority of India-sponsored Raajmarg Infra Investment Trust launched its Rs 6,000-crore IPO. The issue received strong demand from investors. PTI SP DRR