Ahead of its opening, Jio Platforms’ initial public offering (IPO) is commanding a strong grey market premium (GMP). The Rs 30,213-crore IPO comprises 27 crore fresh shares within a price band of Rs 1,065 to Rs 1,119 per share. The issue opens from October 21 to October 23, with listing scheduled for October 28. The company plans to utilise Rs 27,500 crore of the proceeds to prepay borrowings of its material subsidiary, Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd (RJIL).
Jio Platforms IPO GMP
Ahead of its opening, the IPO is commanding a strong grey market premium (GMP). According to India Infoline, it commanded a GMP of Rs 252 per share on October 19, equivalent to an indicated premium of about 22.52 per cent over the upper end of the Rs 1,119 price band. On that basis, the implied grey-market price was approximately Rs 1,371 per share, with an indicative gain of Rs 3,024 for a 12-share lot. GMP is an informal sentiment indicator, can change quickly and does not guarantee the actual listing price or listing gains.
Anchor book demand
The anchor investor window overflowed on Monday as the IPO received 30 times the available shares from global institutional investors, with bids crossing an unprecedented Rs 2.5 lakh crore for just Rs 8,110 crore of available shares. This indicates massive unmet institutional demand expected to spill into the secondary market post-listing.
Brokerages see scope for ARPU and digital-service expansion
Analysts believe Jio’s future growth will increasingly depend on improving average revenue per user (ARPU), encouraging premium-plan adoption, and expanding its digital-services portfolio.
PhilipCapital noted that Jio had reshaped India’s telecom landscape through disruptive pricing and differentiated offerings since its launch in 2016. The brokerage sees potential in tariff increases, organic ARPU expansion and additional revenue from digital services, which could support earnings growth over the coming years.
SBICAPS said the IPO valuation reflects Jio’s scale, earnings performance, technology capabilities and long-term monetisation potential. It also highlighted the expected benefits of debt repayment, including lower finance costs, stronger cash flows and greater capacity to fund future investments.
Improving cash flows strengthen financial flexibility
Jio’s cash generation has improved alongside its operating performance. Cash flow from operations reached approximately Rs 77,556 crore in FY26, while capital expenditure declined from 48.8 per cent of revenue in FY24 to 23.3 per cent in FY26, according to Emkay’s analysis.
Lower capital expenditure intensity could give the company greater flexibility to invest in emerging technologies, expand digital services and strengthen its financial position, provided operating cash flows remain robust.
Centrum Broking estimates Jio Platforms’ equity value at approximately Rs 11.5 lakh crore, using separate valuation approaches for its telecom and other digital businesses. The brokerage expects revenue, EBITDA, and profit after tax to grow at compound annual rates of about 14 per cent, 16 per cent, and 16 per cent, respectively, between FY26 and FY29.
It identifies potential tariff increases, premium offerings and greater adoption of digital services as key drivers of ARPU growth.
ALSO READ:
Akash Ambani outlines strategy ahead of Jio IPO, says scaling up services will boost revenue
