The allotment of shares in Jio Platforms Limited's initial public offering is likely to be finalised on Monday, October 26, after the issue closed last week with a record-breaking response from investors across all categories.
The 30,213-crore-rupee IPO, one of the largest in Indian market history, was subscribed 22.19 times on October 23, the final day of bidding. Investors bid for shares across all investor categories, with institutional buyers leading the demand in a show of confidence in the Reliance Industries-backed telecom and digital services company.
Qualified institutional buyers subscribed to their portion 70.55 times, bidding for 345.75 crore shares against 4.9 crore shares reserved for the category. The non-institutional investor portion was subscribed 14 times, with bids for 51.03 crore shares against 3.64 crore shares on offer. The retail individual investor portion was subscribed 2.72 times, with bids for 23.11 crore shares against 8.5 crore shares reserved for the category.
The response set a global record for an IPO in terms of the number of applications. The issue received more than one crore applications, according to exchange data, surpassing the previous reported record of about 97 lakh applications received by Waaree Energies. Other Indian IPOs that attracted high application numbers include Bajaj Housing Finance and Bharat Coking Coal, each of which received about 90 lakh applications.
Counting the anchor investor placement, total demand for the Jio Platforms issue crossed 7.4 lakh crore rupees, and nearly 1.39 crore applications came in. Excluding anchors, bids in the public issue alone topped 4.9 lakh crore rupees, underlining the scale of investor appetite for the offering.
The IPO opened on October 21 and closed on October 23, with a price band fixed at 1,065 to 1,119 rupees per share. At the upper end of the price band, Jio Platforms is valued at around 10.3 lakh crore rupees, positioning it among India's most valuable companies ahead of its stock market debut. Retail investors could apply for a minimum of 12 shares, requiring an investment of 13,428 rupees at the upper end of the price band.
The company plans to use up to 27,500 crore rupees from the net proceeds to repay or prepay borrowings of its subsidiary, Reliance Jio Infocomm. Jio Platforms is also seeking to diversify its revenue streams beyond its capital-intensive fifth-generation rollout, with focus areas including home broadband, enterprise services, cloud computing and artificial intelligence, which could provide additional growth opportunities.
In the grey market, where shares trade unofficially ahead of listing, the premium for Jio Platforms stood at about 247 rupees apiece, equivalent to nearly 22 per cent above the IPO's upper price band of 1,119 rupees. This translates to an indicative listing price of 1,366 rupees per share.
Over the past 22 trading sessions, the grey market premium has moved between 148 and 273 rupees, suggesting steady interest, though experts caution that the premium is unofficial, can fluctuate sharply and does not guarantee listing gains.
The shares are scheduled to list on the BSE and NSE on October 28, 2026. Following the allotment process, shares are expected to be credited to successful applicants' demat accounts on Tuesday, October 27, ahead of the scheduled listing.
Investors can check their allotment status through three official channels. The first is the registrar, KFin Technologies, whose IPO allotment portal allows applicants to select Jio Platforms from the company dropdown menu and enter their PAN, application number or demat account details, along with the captcha code, before clicking submit.
The second is the BSE website, where applicants select Equity under issue type, choose the issue name and enter their application number or PAN. The third is the NSE website, where applicants use the IPO bid verification page, select Equity and SME IPO bid details, choose Jio Platforms and enter their PAN or application number.
The issue was managed by a long list of book running lead managers, including Kotak Mahindra Capital, Morgan Stanley India, BofA Securities India, Axis Capital, BNP Paribas, Citigroup Global Markets India, CLSA India, DAM Capital Advisors, Goldman Sachs India, HDFC Bank, HSBC Securities and Capital Markets, ICICI Securities, IIFL Capital Services, Jefferies India, JM Financial, JP Morgan India, SBI Capital Markets, UBS Securities India and 360 One WAM.
KFin Technologies is the registrar of the issue.
The scale of the offering reflects the transformation of Jio Platforms from a telecom operator into a diversified digital services company. Since its launch, the company has built India's largest mobile network and expanded into broadband, enterprise connectivity and digital platforms. The IPO is seen as a landmark for the Indian capital market, both for its size and for the breadth of retail participation it attracted.
For retail investors, the allotment process is often the most anxious part of an IPO. When an issue is subscribed many times over, only a fraction of applicants receive shares, and the allotment is typically done through a lottery system for the retail category. Investors who do not receive an allotment have their blocked funds released, while successful applicants see shares credited to their demat accounts before listing.
Market watchers say the listing on October 28 will be closely watched, not only for the debut price but also for what it signals about appetite for large Indian offerings. A strong listing could encourage other large companies to tap the market, while a weak debut could make investors more cautious about aggressive pricing.
The record application numbers also point to the deepening of India's investor base. With more than a crore of applications, the Jio Platforms IPO drew in first-time investors as well as seasoned market participants, reflecting the growing reach of digital investing platforms and the ease with which retail investors can now apply for public issues.
As the allotment is finalised, attention will shift to the listing day, and market participants will be watching closely for any sign of how the debut performs. For now, applicants can check their status through the registrar and exchange websites, and those who receive shares will be watching the opening price on Wednesday with keen interest.
(Reporting based on Moneycontrol and The Economic Times.)