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Reliance Industries’ Jio Platforms has rewritten India’s IPO record book, with its Rs 30,213-crore public issue surpassing Hyundai Motor India’s Rs 27,870-crore offering in 2024 to become the country’s largest-ever IPO.
The issue set records across fundraising, anchor investor demand and applications, while attracting the highest qualified institutional buyer (QIB) subscription among India’s five largest IPOs. It was fully subscribed within 100 minutes of opening and received nearly 1.4 crore applications, according to figures compiled for the issue.
Investors bid for 4,38,26,15,568 shares against 19,75,25,934 shares on offer, taking the overall subscription to 22.19 times, according to NSE data. At the upper end of the Rs 1,065–Rs 1,119 price band, the bids translate into a notional value of around Rs 4.9 lakh crore.
Cumulative demand across the anchor and public book-building process stood at Rs 7.4 lakh crore, according to figures compiled for the issue.
The IPO marks Jio Platforms’ entry into the public markets after it raised around $20 billion from 13 strategic and private equity investors in 2020.
India’s largest IPO
At Rs 30,213 crore, Jio Platforms’ offering has overtaken Hyundai Motor India’s Rs 27,870-crore IPO to become the largest public issue in India.
The issue comprises around 27 crore fresh shares and has no offer-for-sale component, meaning existing investors are not selling shares through the IPO. Jio Platforms plans to use Rs 27,500 crore of the proceeds to repay or prepay borrowings, with the balance earmarked for general corporate purposes.
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QIB subscription hits 70.55 times
The QIB portion was subscribed 70.55 times by the close of bidding on Friday, October 23, the highest level among India’s five largest IPOs. This compares with a subscription of 12.67 times for the National Stock Exchange of India’s IPO.
The issue was subscribed 22.19 times overall. The non-institutional investor (NII) category was subscribed 14 times, while the retail individual investor (RII) portion was subscribed 2.72 times, according to NSE data.
Fully subscribed within 100 minutes
Jio Platforms’ IPO was fully subscribed within 100 minutes of opening, with the QIB portion fully subscribed in the first 10 minutes.
Before the overall issue was fully subscribed, the institutional portion had reached nearly two times subscription in less than 30 minutes, while the issue as a whole was subscribed 0.83 times.
The three-day offering closed on October 23, with demand across investor categories taking the overall subscription to 22.19 times.
Anchor book draws Rs 2.5 lakh crore in bids
Investor demand was strong even before the IPO opened. Jio Platforms’ Rs 8,110-crore anchor book attracted bids worth around Rs 2.5 lakh crore, more than 30 times the shares available, making it the largest anchor demand recorded for an Indian IPO, according to the figures compiled for the issue.
The company allocated shares to 212 investor accounts and schemes at Rs 1,119 apiece, the upper end of the price band. The investor pool included global asset managers, sovereign wealth funds, domestic mutual funds, insurers and pension funds.
Among the investors were LIC, BlackRock, Fidelity, Singapore’s GIC, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, BNP Paribas, Allianz and JPMorgan, along with several Indian mutual fund houses.
Domestic mutual funds accounted for a significant share of the anchor allocation. Ninety-five mutual fund schemes received 2.49 crore shares worth around Rs 2,785 crore, representing 34.34% of the anchor book.
Another 22 insurance companies and pension fund accounts received shares worth around Rs 1,090 crore.
LIC was among the largest individual anchor allottees, receiving 44.68 lakh shares worth nearly Rs 500 crore, or 6.17% of the anchor portion.
Nearly 1.4 crore applications
Jio Platforms attracted nearly 1.4 crore applications, according to figures compiled for the issue. The public issue received more than 1.25 crore applications, surpassing the previous reported record of 97.33 lakh.
The offering was also reported to be the first IPO globally to cross the one-crore application mark. Retail investors accounted for a substantial share of participation, with more than one crore retail applications reported in the compilation.
Applications from existing Reliance Industries shareholders crossed 21 lakh. The small high-net-worth individual (HNI) category received more than 5.75 lakh applications, while applications from large HNIs crossed 3.5 lakh. The employee reservation category received more than two lakh applications.
The figures were compiled by Safal Capital and Investoyard.
Shareholder bids exceed Rs 18,800 crore
The IPO also drew strong demand from non-institutional investors and existing Reliance Industries shareholders.
Demand across the non-institutional categories, including retail investors, HNIs and Reliance shareholders, crossed Rs 1 lakh crore, according to the figures compiled for the issue.
The shareholder reservation category alone attracted bids exceeding Rs 18,800 crore, more than twice the previous reported record of Rs 9,350 crore. Jio Platforms had reserved shares worth up to Rs 2,500 crore for eligible Reliance Industries shareholders, allowing them to participate separately from the regular retail category.
The issue attracted bids worth Rs 67,117 crore on its opening day, October 21, and was subscribed more than three times on the first day.
Implied valuation puts Jio above $100 billion
At an implied market capitalisation of around Rs 10.3 lakh crore at the offer price, Jio Platforms is expected to rank among India’s top three listed companies by market value.
The company is also expected to join a select group of founder-led businesses globally to have achieved an equity valuation exceeding $100 billion at the time of an IPO, alongside names such as Meta, Alibaba and SpaceX, according to figures shared for the issue.
Following the listing, Reliance Group is expected to become India’s largest listed business group by aggregate listed market capitalisation, according to the information provided for the offering.
IPO draws demand amid volatile markets
The offering drew investor capital against a challenging backdrop for Indian equities. Foreign institutional investors had sold around $33 billion worth of equities year to date, while the Nifty 50 had declined approximately 14% over the same period.
Against this backdrop, reported cumulative demand of $78 billion across the anchor and public book-building process made the offering a major focus for domestic and global investors.
Foreign investors converting dollars into rupees to participate in the IPO also created incremental dollar supply, potentially supporting the rupee as rising oil prices put pressure on the currency. The precise impact of IPO-related flows on the exchange rate would need to be established separately.
What comes next
The basis of allotment is expected to be finalised on October 26, with successful applicants likely to receive Jio Platforms shares in their demat accounts by October 27.
The shares are tentatively scheduled to list on the BSE and NSE on October 28.
Meanwhile, activity in the grey market continues to indicate potential listing gains of more than 20% for investors. According to sources tracking unofficial market activity, Jio Platforms shares were quoted at Rs 1,369 apiece, reflecting a grey market premium (GMP) of Rs 250, or 22.34%, over the upper end of the IPO price band of Rs 1,119.
However, the grey market is unregulated, and analysts caution investors against relying solely on the GMP to gauge potential listing gains, as premiums can fluctuate.
Disclosure: This article has been written by Kumar Gaurav, who is not a Sebi-registered Research Analyst or an Investment Adviser. Gaurav and their ‘relative(s)’ (as defined under Section 2(77) of the Companies Act, 2013) do not hold any financial interest in the companies mentioned in this article as of the date of publication. The views/recommendations mentioned in this article, wherever applicable, are those of the respective Sebi-registered Research Analyst/brokerage and have been reproduced/reported with due attribution. They should not be construed as the views or recommendations of The Economic Times Digital or the journalist. Readers are advised to consider the original research report and make their investment decisions based on their own assessment. Brokerage disclaimers here
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