Reliance Jio could achieve $170 billion valuation in record breaking IPO: Report

Investment bankers are proposing a valuation of as much as $170 billion for Jio Platforms Ltd., marking a significant milestone as the company gears up for what could be a record-breaking initial public offering (IPO) under Reliance Industries Ltd.’s wireless arm, according to Bloomberg report.

Discussions with bankers are still underway, with proposed valuations for Jio ranging between $130 billion and $170 billion, the report added. Should the higher-end valuation be realised, it would position Jio as one of the top two or three companies in India by market capitalisation — outpacing rival telecom company Bharti Airtel Ltd., valued at approximately Rs 12.7 lakh crore ($143 billion). In comparison, Reliance Industries, controlled by Mukesh Ambani, currently holds a market capitalization of about Rs 20 lakh crore.

Mukesh Ambani had earlier hinted at Jio's IPO timeline, stating in August that the listing could occur in the first half of 2026. This has been a long-awaited move, with discussions surrounding the possibility of an IPO dating back to 2019. Notably, global tech giants Meta Platforms Inc. and Alphabet Inc. made substantial investments in Jio, totaling over $10 billion, in 2020.

If successful, Jio's IPO would represent Reliance’s first public offering of a major business unit since the debut of Reliance Petroleum Ltd. in 2006.

Under new regulations, companies with a post-listing market capitalization exceeding Rs 5 lakh crore are required to offer shares worth at least Rs 15,000 crore, while diluting only 2.5% of their equity. For Jio, this would translate to an offering of about $4.3 billion, assuming the company achieves the top-end valuation.

Financial highlights

For the September quarter, Jio Platforms Ltd. reported a 13% increase in net profit, reaching Rs 7,379 crore, driven by higher data usage and a growing subscriber base. The company’s revenue from operations rose 15%, hitting Rs 36,332 crore, compared to Rs 31,709 crore in the same period last year.

The company’s Average Revenue Per User (ARPU), a key indicator of profitability, rose 8.4% year-on-year to Rs 211.4 in the second quarter from Rs 195.1. On a sequential basis, ARPU increased by 1.24% from Rs 208.8 in the first quarter of the current financial year.

Jio’s 5G subscriber base soared to 234 million, while its total home connections reached 22.7 million, with over one million new connections added each month. The company’s JioAirFiber service continued to make waves, growing its subscriber base to nearly 9.5 million globally.