Reliance Industries' digital and telecommunications division, Jio Platforms, received an extremely positive response from investors thanks to its IPO. Before the placement closed on Friday, the IPO was subscribed 22.19 times. According to stock market data, the total number of applications, including public placement and anchor investors, exceeded 7.4 lakh crore.
Approximately 1.39 million people applied for the Jio Platforms IPO, setting a new record in the Indian stock market. The placement opened on October 21 and closed on October 23. It was fully subscribed within the first 100 minutes of opening. Investors placed bids for 438.3 million shares against 19.75 million shares available on Friday evening. Only through the public offering were over 4.9 lakh crore applications received, with retail investors requesting more than 25,867 crore.
Institutional investors showed the highest demand for the IPO. For Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIBs), the application count was 70.55 times the reserved shares. The Non-Institutional Investor (NII) category subscribed 14 times, and retail investors subscribed 2.72 times. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) applied for 152.5 million shares, while Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) applied for 123.9 million shares. Mutual funds requested 35.7 million shares. Furthermore, the reserve allocation for Reliance shareholders was subscribed 7.60 times, and for employees 2.93 times. Thus, demand exceeded the available shares in all investor categories.
A record for the number of applications is expected to be broken. It is mentioned that the Jio Platforms IPO received about 1.39 million applications, which is more than 97.34 lakh applications registered during the Wari Energies IPO in October 2024. Compared to other major IPOs, the Bajaj Housing Finance placement was fully subscribed by 2 PM on the opening day. The LG Electronics India IPO was fully sold out at the end of the first day in 2025. Meanwhile, the Hyundai Motor India IPO worth 27,870 crore in 2024 only received 18% subscription on the first day, making the size of the Jio Platforms IPO also stand out. It is larger than the Hyundai Motor India IPO worth 27,870 crore and is poised to set a record for the largest public offering in the Indian stock market.
Before the public offering, Jio Platforms attracted about 8,110 crore from 212 anchor investors on October 19. Anchor investor shares were allotted at a price of 1,119 rupees per share, corresponding to the upper limit of the IPO price band. Reports indicate that the anchor book received over 2.5 lakh crore applications, more than 30 times the allocated fund. These included major global investors such as BlackRock, Fidelity Investments, GIC, and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.
Jio Platforms set the IPO price band at between 1,065 and 1,119 rupees per share. The company is issuing 270 million new shares. The goal was to raise 30,213 crore at the upper end of the price band. At this price, the company's valuation will be approximately $108 billion. A key aspect of this IPO is that existing shareholders are not selling their stake; it is a complete issuance of new shares, and the proceeds will go to the company. Reliance Industries owns 66.4% of Jio Platforms. The company plans to use up to 27,500 crore of the raised funds to repay debt of its wholly-owned subsidiary, Reliance Jio Infocomm. The remaining funds will be directed towards investments in technology and digital services, capital expenditures, and covering daily operational needs.
Jio Platforms Manager, Akash Ambani, stated that the company is moving beyond telecommunication services, focusing on technology, artificial intelligence (AI), and cloud services. The company views its 53.33 million customers as the foundation for expanding these new business areas. The huge demand for the IPO indicates that investors are interested not only in Jio Platforms' current telecommunications business but also in the expansion of its digital services and technological infrastructure. The IPO will be listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and National Stock Exchange (NSE) on October 28. The Grey Market Premium (GMP) for this IPO is 23.24%.