Wire reporting: (Reuters, via CNA)

Jio Platforms Ltd., the telecom and digital unit of Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries, began trading in Mumbai on Wednesday after India's largest initial public offering, with several outlets reporting a first-day jump of more than 20 percent that briefly made it the country's second-most valuable listed company after its parent^1,2,4,7.

Al Jazeera, reporting on Saturday, said the company raised $3.2 billion and that shares rose 21 percent, valuing Jio at $131.5 billion, with Meta and Google among major shareholders after 2020 investments¹. TechCrunch put the open at 1,358 rupees versus an IPO price of 1,119 rupees and a similar valuation of about $131.9 billion². CNBC's available reporting said 270 million shares at 1,119 rupees raised 302 billion rupees, or $3.2 billion, with a debut gain of about 21.5 percent^7,9.

Times of India said the stock closed the session at 1,419 rupees, up 27 percent, for a market capitalization of 13.1 lakh crore rupees, behind Reliance at 15.7 lakh crore and ahead of Bharti Airtel at 12.2 lakh crore⁴. The National, carrying Bloomberg, gave a close of 1,417.50 rupees, a $137 billion valuation and a $3.1 billion raise, and said the Ambani group overtook Tata as India's most valuable conglomerate⁵. A later Techmeme pointer to Bloomberg said two sessions added about $36 billion, taking the market cap to about $144 billion from an IPO valuation near $108 billion³.

Demand figures also vary by outlet. TechCrunch said the Oct. 21-22 offer was subscribed 22.19 times, with more than 13.8 million applicants and more than $77 billion in bids². Times of India said the issue was fully subscribed in about 100 minutes and that nearly 1.3 crore investors applied⁴. A second Times of India explainer put total demand across the public issue and anchors above 7.4 lakh crore rupees and quoted managing director Akash Ambani as saying the issue was fully subscribed within 95 minutes¹⁰. CNA, carrying Reuters before the open, said bids totaled $77 billion against a pre-listing valuation of up to $108.3 billion⁸.

Jio entered a crowded Indian mobile market in 2016 with free data and low prices, then became the largest operator; Al Jazeera said it now serves more than 530 million customers, while Akash Ambani put homegrown platforms above 540 million^1,2,10. TechCrunch said fiscal 2026 profit was about $3.2 billion on $15.5 billion in revenue and that up to about $2.9 billion of IPO proceeds is meant to repay debt at Reliance Jio Infocomm, with total borrowings about $6.5 billion as of June 30².

At the National Stock Exchange ceremony, Anant Ambani said, "Today, Jio is shared with India," according to Al Jazeera¹. Akash Ambani said he wants Jio counted among global technology companies, TechCrunch reported². Bloomberg, via The National, quoted investor Shankar Sharma calling it "a bumper listing and highly welcome in the current market situation"⁵.

CNA's Reuters copy said brokerages still flagged competition, heavy capital spending and possible changes in spectrum, licensing and fees⁸. Bloomberg reporting republished by The National likewise cited regulatory and valuation risks even as the deal drew more than $78 billion in bids⁵. What Jio's listed valuation does in later sessions, and how proceeds are applied to debt, were not settled in the first-day accounts^2,3.