Jio IPO scripts global record with 1.39 cr applications

New Delhi: Jio Platforms' initial public offering closed with bids for 22.19 times the shares on offer, as total demand across the public issue and anchor investor placement crossed Rs 7.4 lakh crore and applications approached a world-beating 1.39 crore in an unprecedented response to the Reliance Industries-backed digital services company.

The public offering alone attracted bids worth more than Rs 4.9 lakh crore, excluding the anchor book, and retail demand exceeded Rs 25,867 crore, according to stock exchange data. The combined demand represents the value of shares investors sought, rather than the amount the company will raise.

The application count of 1.39 crore would surpass the previous Indian IPO record of 97.34 crore applications set by solar equipment maker Waaree Energies in October 2024. By 7 pm on Friday, investors had bid for 438.3 crore shares against 19.75 crore shares on offer, translating into an overall subscription of 22.19 times, according to the exchange's cumulative demand schedule.

Institutional demand was the strongest component of the offering.

Qualified institutional buyers bid for 345.8 crore shares against 4.9 crore reserved, taking their category to 70.55 times subscription. Non-institutional investors subscribed 14 times their allocation, and retail individual investors bid for 2.72 times the shares reserved for them. Within the qualified institutional buyer category, domestic financial institutions, including banks, financial institutions and insurers, bid for 152.5 crore shares, and foreign institutional investors bid for 123.9 crore shares.

Mutual funds bid for 35,7 crore shares. The shareholder reservation category was subscribed 7.60 times and the employee portion 2.93 times, the exchange data showed.

Jio Platforms’ IPO comprises an entirely fresh issue of 27 crore shares. At the upper end of its price band, the company will raise about Rs 30,213 crore and command a valuation of roughly $108 billion. Neither parent Reliance Industries nor its other existing shareholders are selling shares in the offering.

Ahead of the public issue, Jio Platforms raised about Rs 8,110 crore from 212 anchor investors on October 19, allotting shares at Rs 1,119 apiece, the upper end of the price band. The anchor book reportedly attracted bids exceeding Rs 2.5 lakh crore, more than 30 times the amount allocated. Investors included global asset managers and sovereign wealth funds such as BlackRock, Fidelity Investments, GIC and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

The company plans to use up to Rs 27,500 crore of the proceeds to repay borrowings at Reliance Jio Infocomm, its wholly owned subsidiary. The remaining proceeds will support capital expenditure, including investments in technology and digital services, and working capital requirements.

Managing Director Akash Ambani has said Jio Platforms is betting on technology, artificial intelligence and cloud services to drive growth beyond telecommunications. The scale of demand highlights investor interest in Jio’s established telecom business and its plans to expand into digital services and technology infrastructure.

The fresh capital will help reduce debt at its operating subsidiary while providing funds for future investment. The final subscription figures confirm that the issue was heavily oversubscribed across all investor categories.

Jio Platforms, in which Reliance owns a 66.4 per cent stake, launched its IPO on Wednesday, seeking to raise about Rs 30,213 crore at the upper end of its price band of Rs 1,065-1,119 per share. The offering, comprising entirely fresh shares, closed on Friday. On Wednesday, the opening day of the IPO, Jio Platforms Ltd’s IPO was fully subscribed within 100 minutes, making it the fastest-subscribed mega public issue in India. The early pace set Jio apart from other large Indian offerings.

Bajaj Housing Finance’s IPO was fully subscribed by 2 pm on its opening day, and LG Electronics India’s offering reached full subscription by the end of day 1 in 2025.

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The Hans India