Market capitalisation (market cap) is the total market value of all a company's outstanding shares.
Market Cap = Share Price × Total Shares Outstanding
For a listed company this updates every second. For an unlisted company, you calculate it using the current transaction price (from Polemarch or recent deals) multiplied by total shares from the latest annual report or DRHP.
Size categories (Indian market)
| Category | Market Cap | |---|---| | Large-cap | ≥ ₹20,000 crore | | Mid-cap | ₹5,000 – ₹20,000 crore | | Small-cap | < ₹5,000 crore |
Most unlisted unicorns (₹8,000 crore+) would qualify as large-cap on listing.
Market cap vs enterprise value
Market cap only counts equity. For debt-bearing companies, enterprise value (market cap + debt − cash) is a more complete picture of the total business value.
Example: An unlisted payment company at ₹450/share with 50 crore shares has a ₹22,500 crore market cap — firmly large-cap territory.