Jio Platforms IPO enters crypto markets as Bitget launches pre-IPO futures for valuation bets

Crypto traders are already betting on the valuation of Jio Platforms Ltd ahead of its record-breaking initial public offering, with crypto exchange Bitget offering round-the-clock trading in a pre-IPO perpetual futures contract linked to the company, Bloomberg reported.

The JIOUSDT contract was trading at about $11.93 on Thursday, implying a valuation of roughly $110 billion if applied across Jio's shares. This is slightly higher than the approximately $107 billion valuation the company would command at the top of its IPO price range.

Bitget listed the contract on Wednesday, days before Jio's official public debut, in what appears to be the first such product linked to an Indian company. The contract settles through Tether's USDT stablecoin, trades 24 hours a day and offers leverage of up to 20 times.

The contract generated about $1.4 million in turnover during the preceding 24 hours, according to Bitget data. The perpetual futures market provides another price-discovery mechanism for Jio before its shares begin trading on Indian exchanges.

Unlike dated futures, perpetual futures have no expiry. Periodic funding payments between long and short positions help keep their prices aligned with the underlying market. Once largely used by crypto traders to speculate on tokens, the structure has expanded to real-world assets, including equities, commodities and pre-IPO companies.

Jio is the telecom and digital services arm of billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd and is among India's most closely watched listings.

“Traders of these pre-IPO perpetual futures appear to be enormously informed and successful in pinning the IPO prices of many international IPOs — indicating more and more sophisticated players are using these platforms to express their views,” said Pratik Kala, a portfolio manager at Apollo Crypto.

The trading activity indicates that investors are using crypto-based perpetual futures to express their views on Jio's valuation before its public listing, with the contract currently implying a valuation slightly above the top end of the IPO range.