Exclusive | Akash, Isha Ambani take Rs 30,000 crore Jio IPO pitch global; marquee investors seek bigger stakes

Jio Platforms Ltd’s planned Rs 30,000 crore initial public offering (IPO) is drawing strong interest from global and domestic investors, with existing marquee backers also seeking to increase their holdings rather than sell, according to people familiar with the matter.

The telecom and digital services arm of billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries has completed international roadshows across the Americas, Europe and Southeast Asia. Akash Ambani and Isha Ambani have personally met investors across these regions and have been travelling regularly for the roadshows, the people said. Jio is being positioned as a technology company rather than merely a telecom business.

The company is now conducting domestic roadshows, where major mutual funds and other institutional investors are seeking a share of the offering. The strong investor response comes as Jio prepares for what could become India’s largest-ever IPO and Reliance Industries’ first public offering in 3 decades.


Jio’s existing investor base includes Meta, Google, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, KKR, Vista Equity Partners, Silver Lake, Mubadala, General Atlantic, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and TPG. Meta’s affiliate Jaadhu Holdings is the largest external investor with a 9.98% stake, followed by Google International with 7.73%.

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None of these investors plan to sell shares in the mega IPO. In fact, people familiar with the matter said some existing backers are seeking to increase their exposure to Jio Platforms rather than dilute their holdings. The IPO will comprise an entirely fresh issue, without an offer-for-sale (OFS) component.

The company is focusing on retail investors and plans to price the IPO in a manner that leaves some value on the table for investors.

Jio is set to price its shares at Rs 1,065– Rs 1,119 apiece, according to an earlier report by Bloomberg, which said the company is targeting a market value of as much as Rs 10.3 lakh crore. At the upper end of the price band, the IPO could raise about Rs 30,200 crore, according to Bloomberg calculations.

The company plans to open the issue for public subscription on Oct. 21 and close it on Oct. 23. The anchor book is scheduled to open on Oct. 19, with the shares expected to begin trading on Oct. 28. Deliberations are ongoing and details including the price range, valuation and timing could still change.

At the proposed valuation, the offering would surpass Hyundai Motor India Ltd’s Rs 27,800 crore IPO in October 2024, currently India’s largest share sale. Jio would also become the first top-three company to list on Indian stock exchanges, according to people familiar with the matter.

The valuation is below some earlier expectations. Jio had previously been poised to seek a valuation of about Rs 11 lakh crore. A selloff in Indian stocks has since tempered pricing expectations for several IPOs.

Jio filed its draft prospectus in June for an offering of as many as 270 million new shares, equivalent to about 2.93% of its post-issue equity capital. Motilal Oswal Financial Services estimated Jio’s valuation at Rs 11.2 lakh crore.

Jio has appointed 19 banks to work on the share sale, including Kotak Mahindra Capital Co., Morgan Stanley, Bank of America Corp., Axis Capital Ltd., BNP Paribas SA and Citigroup Inc.

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Implications for Reliance shareholders

The listing will provide investors with a direct route to Jio, while Reliance Industries will continue to hold about 66.4% of the company. Motilal Oswal said the listing could create a case for applying a holding company discount to Reliance’s stake.

However, the brokerage believes Reliance’s current share price already factors in an estimated 18%–36% holding company discount on its Jio Platforms stake, based on 15–20 times September 2028 estimated EV/EBITDA valuations for Reliance Retail Ventures.

“While investors who invested in RIL for its digital services will now have an option to gain direct exposure through JPL,” Reliance will remain a play on India’s largest retailer, its integrated energy business and other growth opportunities including new energy, data centres, artificial intelligence and FMCG, Motilal Oswal said.

The brokerage reiterated its buy ratings on Reliance Industries and Bharti Airtel, saying the “risk-reward is compelling.”

The Jio IPO could also influence telecom-sector allocations, with investors gaining another large listed option alongside Bharti Airtel. Motilal Oswal said concerns over a partial shift in telecom allocations from Bharti to Jio were “overblown” because Jio would initially have limited free float compared with Bharti’s foreign and domestic institutional ownership.

The brokerage also expects a smartphone tariff increase of about 15% in December 2026, following the Jio IPO and Vodafone Idea Ltd.’s planned fundraise. It said a tariff hike could support stronger earnings and a potential multiple re-rating for both Bharti Airtel and Jio Platforms.

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