Jio Platforms gains 21% in record-setting Indian IPO debut
Jio Platforms rose 21% in its stock market debut on Wednesday after raising $3.2 billion in India’s largest and most subscribed initial public offering. The telecom and digital-services unit of Reliance Industries opened at ₹1,358 per share, compared with an IPO price of ₹1,119, valuing the company at about ₹12.5 trillion.
The listing places Jio as India’s second-most valuable listed company, behind parent Reliance Industries, which is valued at about ₹16 trillion. The offering ran from October 21 to 22 and attracted more than $77 billion in bids for shares.
Record demand for the offering
Exchange data showed bids for 22.19 times the shares offered, with more than 13.8 million applicants. The result made the transaction India’s most subscribed stock offering on record and reflected demand for the country’s largest telecom operator.
Jio issued only new shares in the IPO. Meta, Google, General Atlantic, Silver Lake and Vista Equity Partners, which invested in the company in 2020, did not sell shares. Meta invested $5.7 billion and Google invested $4.5 billion during that funding period, when Jio was valued at as much as ₹4.91 trillion.
The public-market debut follows Jio’s planned record Indian IPO, which set out the planned $3.2 billion transaction and its potential to establish an Indian record.
Subscriber scale and a broader technology strategy
Jio entered India’s telecom market in 2016 with free data and low-cost services, gaining customers from established rivals including Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea and state-owned BSNL. Its pricing is now broadly aligned with rivals, while its operations have expanded into broadband, cloud services and artificial intelligence.
At the listing ceremony, managing director Akash Ambani said Jio’s platforms serve more than 540 million customers. He also said he wants Jio to become a global technology company, as he takes on a larger role in Reliance’s next generation of leadership.
Debt repayment is the main use of proceeds
Jio plans to use up to ₹275 billion from the offering to repay debt at telecom subsidiary Reliance Jio Infocomm. The remaining proceeds are earmarked for general corporate purposes. Jio reported total borrowings of ₹613.7 billion as of June 30.
For the fiscal year ended March 2026, Jio reported profit of ₹300.5 billion on revenue of ₹1.47 trillion, with both measures up about 15% year on year. In the June quarter, revenue rose nearly 12% and profit increased 9%. For businesses assessing Jio, the debut makes its public valuation, capital allocation and operating performance more visible as it invests across telecom, cloud and AI.