Jio Platforms IPO Price Fixed At Rs 1,119 Ahead Of October 28 Listing

Mumbai, October 26: Jio Platforms has fixed the price of its initial public offering (IPO) at Rs 1,119 per share, the upper end of its price band, after India’s largest-ever public issue attracted 22.2 times subscription. The telecom and digital services arm of Reliance Industries is scheduled to list on the BSE and NSE on Wednesday, October 28, at an implied equity valuation of around Rs 10.3 lakh crore. 

The Rs 30,188-crore offering drew overwhelming investor interest during its three-day subscription window, which closed on October 23. Total demand across the public issue and anchor investor book exceeded Rs 7.4 lakh crore, equivalent to around $78 billion, while the number of applications approached 1.39 crore. 

Jio Platforms IPO draws strong investor demand 

The qualified institutional buyers (QIB) category led the subscription, with bids reaching 70.55 times the shares reserved for the segment. The non-institutional investor category was subscribed 14 times, while the retail portion received bids for 2.72 times its reserved quota. The strong institutional response underscored investor appetite for the telecom company’s scale and its expansion into digital services. 

The Jio Platforms IPO was fully subscribed within approximately 100 minutes of opening, while the QIB portion was covered within the first 10 minutes. 

Jio Platforms listing date and valuation 

Jio Platforms shares are scheduled to debut on the BSE and NSE on October 28. At the final issue price of Rs 1,119 apiece, the company carries an implied equity valuation of approximately Rs 10.3 lakh crore, or around $109 billion. 

The valuation could place Jio Platforms among India’s four largest listed companies by market capitalisation, depending on prevailing share prices of other companies when it lists. Its debut is also expected to provide investors with an opportunity to assess the standalone value of Reliance Industries’ telecom and digital businesses. 

Unlike several large Indian IPOs that have included an offer for sale by existing shareholders, Jio Platforms’ issue consists entirely of fresh equity shares. Consequently, the proceeds will go to the company rather than to existing investors seeking to sell their holdings. 

How Jio Platforms plans to use IPO proceeds 

Jio Platforms had indicated that up to Rs 27,500 crore of the net proceeds would be used to repay or prepay borrowings at its subsidiary, Reliance Jio Infocomm. The remaining proceeds are earmarked for general corporate purposes. 

At an IPO press conference earlier this month, chairman Akash Ambani said the company was moving towards becoming net debt-free, highlighting debt reduction as an important step in strengthening its financial position. 

The listing is also expected to give investors greater visibility into the value of Jio’s digital operations, which span mobile connectivity, fixed broadband, cloud computing, enterprise technology and other digital services. Brokerages have previously identified the public listing as a potential catalyst for unlocking value at Reliance Industries through independent price discovery. 

Jio Platforms’ stock market debut will therefore be closely watched not only by IPO investors but also by shareholders of Reliance Industries, as the market determines how the telecom and digital business should be valued relative to listed peers. 

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