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Reliance Industries Group will become India's largest conglomerate in terms of the combined market value of its listed companies after Jio Platforms makes its stock market debut, Kotak Mahindra Bank founder Uday Kotak said on Thursday.
Speaking at the Jio Platforms IPO press conference in Mumbai, Kotak highlighted the significance of the upcoming listing, which is expected to strengthen the group's position in India's equity markets by giving its digital and telecom business a separate market valuation. "The RIL group, after Jio's listing, will be India's largest conglomerate basis listed market cap," Kotak said. The statement comes as Jio Platforms prepares to launch India's largest initial public offering (IPO), opening a new chapter for Reliance Industries as its telecom and digital services subsidiary enters the stock market. Highlighting the scale of the public offering, Kotak said, "This historic IPO comes from the RIL group after nearly two decades. It will be India's largest IPO ever at rupees 30,188 crores at the upper end of the price band." Jio Platforms has fixed the IPO price band at Rs 1,065 to Rs 1,119 per equity share. The public issue will open for subscription on October 21 and close on October 23, with up to 27 crore fresh equity shares on offer. The company has also reserved shares worth up to Rs 2,500 crore for eligible Reliance Industries shareholders and up to Rs 500 crore for eligible employees. Kotak also highlighted Jio's transformation of India's telecom sector over the past decade, pointing to its subscriber base of 53 crore and its role in making mobile data more affordable. He said Jio's entry into the telecom market transformed connectivity in India by bringing down service costs and expanding digital access. Referring to the company's financial performance, Kotak highlighted revenue of Rs 1,46,885 crore and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) exceeding Rs 76,000 crore. The upcoming listing will allow investors to directly participate in Jio's future growth, while providing the market with a separate valuation for one of Reliance Industries' largest businesses. Reliance Industries shares rose 3.44 per cent on Thursday to close at Rs 1,215 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE), marking their biggest single-day percentage gain in over two months. The rise came ahead of the launch of Jio Platforms' IPO on October 21. (ANI)
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