Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries is moving very fast towards bringing the Initial Public Offering (IPO) of its leading telecom unit, Jio Platforms Limited. According to the report of Economics Times, the company is preparing to file its Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) with the market regulator by the end of this month. This draft is expected to include the financial figures of the company till the end of December.
How big are Reliance’s preparations?
The seriousness of Reliance management regarding this mega IPO of Jio can be gauged from the fact that the company has strongly taken steps in this direction. As many as 17 senior bankers have been appointed on Tuesday to successfully handle this huge issue in the market. According to people associated with this entire process, nine reputed global banks have been selected for the important role of advisor. These global names include some of the world’s largest financial institutions such as Morgan Stanley, HSBC Holdings PLC, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Citigroup Inc. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Along with this, this big responsibility has been entrusted to Kotak Mahindra Capital Company, Axis Capital Limited, JM Financial Limited and SBI Capital Markets Limited as advisors on the domestic front.
Is the path cleared for ‘Maha-IPO’?
Jio’s much-awaited IPO plans actually gained momentum when the government made a major and favorable change in the listing requirements. Under this new approval given by the government, now large issuers are allowed to dilute only 2.5% of their equity while entering the stock market. This small but very important change has made it much easier for a giant company like Reliance to launch an IPO. Market experts clearly believe that this could prove to be the biggest IPO in the history of India. Another interesting thing is that this will be the first IPO to be launched by a major unit of Mukesh Ambani’s flagship company Reliance in the last two decades.
When will the issue come?
There is a strong possibility that in the proposed IPO, mainly existing investors will sell their shares (secondary share sale). If all preparations move in the right direction, investors may get a chance to invest money in this IPO by the end of this year. However, it is important to note that the exact size of this entire transaction, its structure and the exact timing of its market entry are still being finalized and there is scope for change. At present, neither the company nor the representatives of the concerned banks have made any official comment on this subject after business hours.