When promoters and CFOs evaluate IPO readiness, the initial focus is invariably on EBITDA margins, growth projections, and merchant banker selection. Yet, in practice, what frequently stalls a Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) or triggers protracted SEBI and stock exchange observations is historical corporate housekeeping. Having coordinated equity and debt capital market transactions - including public issues, rights issues, and bond issuances over close to three decades -