Top 10 firms shed ₹1.56 lakh crore in market cap in holiday week
Synopsis
India's equity markets had one of their roughest weeks in recent months, wiping out ₹1.56 lakh crore from eight of the country's 10 most valued firms. HDFC Bank alone lost over ₹55,000 crore, its shares sliding nearly 5% — while the total BSE market cap shrank by a staggering ₹20.79 lakh crore in just four sessions.
Key Takeaways
Eight of India's top 10 listed firms collectively lost ₹1,55,671.9 crore in market cap last week.
HDFC Bank was the biggest loser, shedding ₹55,506.95 crore as its shares fell roughly 5% .
Bajaj Finance and Reliance Industries lost ₹34,180.51 crore and ₹27,065.08 crore respectively.
The total BSE market cap fell ₹20.79 lakh crore over four sessions, closing at ₹451.83 lakh crore .
TCS gained ₹23,517.56 crore and L&T added ₹1,788.66 crore , the only top-10 firms to end in the green.
The Sensex fell 1,605.44 points (2.15%) and the Nifty dropped 546.15 points (2.36%) over the week.
Eight of India's 10 most valuable listed companies collectively lost ₹1,55,671.9 crore in market capitalisation last week as a broad-based equity sell-off battered valuations across sectors. HDFC Bank and Bajaj Finance accounted for the steepest share of the erosion, while TCS and Larsen & Toubro (L&T) were the only members of the elite club to end the week in the green.
Market-Wide Damage
The rout unfolded over a holiday-shortened trading week, with the benchmark Sensex dropping 1,605.44 points, or 2.15%, and the Nifty falling 546.15 points, or 2.36%. The broader impact was even sharper: the total market capitalisation of all BSE-listed companies declined by ₹20.79 lakh crore across four trading sessions, closing at ₹451.83 lakh crore, down from ₹472.62 lakh crore on 16 October.
Biggest Losers Among Top Firms
HDFC Bank recorded the sharpest individual erosion, with its market cap falling by ₹55,506.95 crore to ₹10.67 lakh crore. The lender's shares declined roughly 5% over the week, making it the single largest drag on the top-10 list.
Bajaj Finance was the second-biggest casualty, shedding ₹34,180.51 crore to close the week at a market cap of ₹5.77 lakh crore. Reliance Industries also saw substantial value destruction, with its market cap shrinking by ₹27,065.08 crore to ₹16.10 lakh crore — leaving it as the country's most valued listed firm despite the decline.
Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) lost ₹21,062.24 crore in valuation, closing at ₹4.81 lakh crore. Bharti Airtel saw its market value shrink by ₹9,360.75 crore to ₹11.79 lakh crore, while State Bank of India (SBI) dropped ₹4,338.46 crore to ₹8.83 lakh crore. Infosys shed ₹2,881.38 crore to ₹4.69 lakh crore, and ICICI Bank slipped by ₹1,276.53 crore to ₹10.02 lakh crore.
Two Firms Buck the Trend
TCS stood out as the top gainer in the elite cohort, adding ₹23,517.56 crore to its market value and closing at ₹9.15 lakh crore. Engineering and infrastructure conglomerate L&T also resisted the selling pressure, with its market cap rising by ₹1,788.66 crore to ₹5.02 lakh crore.
Context and Broader Implications
This is one of the sharper single-week contractions in combined blue-chip market cap in recent months, reflecting both domestic and global headwinds. Notably, the banking and financial services segment — represented by HDFC Bank, Bajaj Finance, SBI, and ICICI Bank — bore a disproportionate share of the losses, raising questions about near-term earnings and credit growth expectations. The sell-off also accelerates a broader pattern of foreign institutional outflows that have weighed on Indian equities in recent weeks.
How markets respond to upcoming earnings releases from the financial sector and any signals from global central banks will likely determine whether last week's losses deepen or stabilise in the sessions ahead.
Point of View
The very segment that underpins credit growth and consumer confidence. HDFC Bank's near-5% weekly slide is particularly telling: the lender has been a bellwether for domestic sentiment, and sustained selling here signals deeper institutional concern about near-term earnings and net interest margins. The fact that TCS bucked the trend — even as Infosys slipped — hints at a divergence within IT, likely driven by deal-flow expectations rather than macro recovery. With BSE's total market cap down by over ₹20 lakh crore in four sessions, the scale of the risk-off move demands scrutiny beyond headline index numbers.
NationPress
25 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
How much market value did India's top 10 firms lose last week?
Eight of India's top 10 most valuable listed companies collectively lost ₹1,55,671.9 crore in market capitalisation last week. The losses were driven by a broad-based equity sell-off during a holiday-shortened trading week.
Which company lost the most market cap last week?
HDFC Bank recorded the sharpest erosion, with its market cap falling by ₹55,506.95 crore to ₹10.67 lakh crore. The lender's shares declined around 5% over the week.
Which top-10 firms gained market value last week?
TCS and L&T were the only companies among the top 10 to post gains. TCS added ₹23,517.56 crore, closing at a market cap of ₹9.15 lakh crore, while L&T rose ₹1,788.66 crore to ₹5.02 lakh crore.
How much did the overall BSE market cap fall last week?
The total market capitalisation of all BSE-listed companies fell by ₹20.79 lakh crore over four trading sessions, ending at ₹451.83 lakh crore compared with ₹472.62 lakh crore on 16 October.
How did the benchmark indices perform last week?
The Sensex fell 1,605.44 points, or 2.15%, while the Nifty dropped 546.15 points, or 2.36%, over a holiday-shortened trading week marked by significant selling pressure across sectors.
