Jio Platforms Limited allocated ₹81.1 billion ($854 million) in shares ahead of its IPO, while CNBC, citing a person familiar with the matter, reported institutional orders worth more than 30 times that amount.
CNBC put the orders at about ₹2.5 trillion ($26.3 billion). That reported figure measures demand for the anchor tranche; it does not represent the value of shares investors received.
A BSE notice dated Oct. 19 records 72,474,066 shares assigned to anchor investors at ₹1,119 each, the top of Jio’s ₹1,065-to-₹1,119 price range. The anchor allocation took place before the public sale.
BlackRock, Capital Group and GIC were among the institutions seeking shares, CNBC reported. The reported bids and the confirmed allocation describe different stages of the offering.
Jio, a subsidiary of Reliance Industries Limited, plans to raise up to $3.2 billion by selling new shares. Its prospectus provides for up to 270 million shares and includes no sale by existing owners. Issuing new shares will reduce current holders’ percentage ownership.
The prospectus says Jio intends to use the net proceeds partly to prepay, in full or in part, certain outstanding borrowings taken out by Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited. It also lists general corporate purposes. At the top of the price range, the offering’s advertised maximum would exceed Hyundai Motor India Limited’s 2024 IPO in rupee terms.
Public bidding is scheduled to open Oct. 21 and close Oct. 23.
