By Salma El-Sakka
Shares of Reliance Jio Platforms jumped 21 percent in their Mumbai stock market debut on Wednesday, making the telecom and digital services unit India's second-largest company by market capitalization at about $131.5 billion.
Strong opening overshadows risks
The stock opened at 1,358 rupees per share, well above the 1,119-rupee offer price, pushing Jio's valuation past rivals Bharti Airtel and HDFC Bank. Jio serves more than 530 million customers, the second-largest single-country subscriber base after China Mobile, and counts Meta Platforms and Alphabet's Google among its backers.
Ambani family leads ceremonial listing
Mukesh Ambani, his eldest son and Jio managing director Akash Ambani, wife Nita Ambani, and children Isha and Anant Ambani attended the ceremony at the National Stock Exchange. An emotional Mukesh Ambani was seen in tears as his son Anant traced the legacy of Reliance and Jio in a speech. The family rang the traditional IPO bell on stage.
Analysts cite growth potential amid challenges
Brokerages see further upside for the stock but flagged intense competition, heavy capital expenditure, and potential changes to India's telecom regulations on spectrum, licensing, and fees. "Jio has had a strong debut even despite geopolitical issues and turbulent market conditions ... the revenues and earnings will lead the stock here onwards," said Kranthi Bathini, equity strategist at WealthMills Securities.
India leads global IPO activity by volume
India has become the world's busiest IPO market this year in terms of deal count, with 246 listings so far, though it ranks fourth by funds raised at $13.5 billion, behind the United States, mainland China, and Hong Kong, according to LSEG data. Major Indian newspapers carried front-page advertisements from Reliance Jio thanking the country on Wednesday.
