SEBI clears Jio Platforms IPO, paving way for potentially India’s biggest public issue

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has cleared the proposed initial public offering (IPO) of Jio Platforms, taking the Reliance Industries-backed digital and telecom major a significant step closer to its much-awaited stock market debut.

The market regulator issued its observation letter on Friday for the draft offer documents filed by Jio Platforms in June. Receipt of SEBI’s observations is a key regulatory requirement before a company can proceed with an IPO. The proposed listing is expected to rank among the biggest public issues in India and comes at a time when activity in the country’s primary market has gathered momentum.

Fresh issue of 27 crore shares

According to the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP), the IPO will consist entirely of a fresh issue of up to 27 crore equity shares with a face value of Rs 10 each. The final issue price will be determined through the book-building process. The offering does not include an offer for sale by existing shareholders, meaning the proceeds raised through the IPO will go to the company rather than investors selling their stakes.

Jio Platforms had filed its draft papers with SEBI on June 19 after its board approved the proposed public offering. Reliance Industries had subsequently informed the stock exchanges about the move. The proposed IPO has been keenly watched because of Jio’s scale and its position across India’s telecommunications and digital services markets.

Debt repayment a key objective

A substantial portion of the proceeds from the offering is expected to be used towards repaying or prepaying borrowings of Reliance Jio Infocomm, the telecom subsidiary of Jio Platforms.

The company has earmarked about Rs 27,500 crore from the net proceeds towards repayment or prepayment of outstanding borrowings, while the remaining amount is expected to be used for general corporate purposes.

Jio Platforms has also been reducing its leverage. Its net debt stood at about Rs 27,579 crore at the end of March 2026, compared with more than Rs 45,000 crore a year earlier.

Jio’s massive subscriber base

Jio Platforms has emerged as one of India’s largest digital businesses after Reliance Jio disrupted the domestic telecom market following its commercial launch in 2016.

As of the end of March 2026, the company served around 524.4 million customers across its consumer and business operations. Its businesses span mobile and fixed broadband connectivity as well as cloud, entertainment, enterprise services, Internet of Things, smart-home solutions and artificial intelligence-based offerings.

The company has also built a sizeable 5G customer base as it expands its digital infrastructure and services across the country.

Jio Platforms reported revenue from operations of Rs 1.47 lakh crore in FY26, compared with about Rs 1.10 lakh crore in FY24. Its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation also increased during the period.

Global investors hold significant stakes

Reliance Industries remains the controlling shareholder in Jio Platforms, holding 66.43 per cent of its paid-up equity share capital. The remaining stake is held by investors who came on board during Jio’s major fundraising exercise in 2020.

Meta and Google are among the prominent global investors in the company. Other investors who participated in the earlier fundraising included Silver Lake, Vista Equity Partners, General Atlantic, KKR, Mubadala, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, TPG and several other international investment firms.

Jio Platforms raised more than Rs 1.5 lakh crore from global investors in 2020, an exercise that helped Reliance significantly strengthen its balance sheet while bringing some of the world’s biggest technology and investment companies into Jio’s shareholder base.

The IPO will now move towards the next stages of the regulatory and listing process, including finalisation of the issue dates and price band. If completed at the anticipated scale, Jio Platforms’ market debut could become a landmark offering for India’s capital markets.