Video: Has the Royal Mail been undervalued? Institutional and retail investors have reportedly requested £30bn worth of Royal Mail shares, though the offer is expected to be just £2bn when the first phase of the privitisation is launched on Friday. Business Secretary Vince Cable today confirmed that the Government had received around 700,000 applications for shares. Asked whether the Royal Mail had been undervalued given the record demand, Alastair McCaig, market analyst at IG Index said the Government had a tough task in gauging the market. "They don't really want an overhang of stock once the IPO goes to completion, so from that point of view maybe it's a little on the low side," Mr McCaig said. Having said that the appetite, the excitement and the interest from the retail clients has really helped drive this up.