Akash Ambani has set his sights on a significant share of India's projected $1.4 trillion digital economy by FY31, pitching Jio Platforms' technology capabilities, growing patent portfolio and nationwide 5G network to investors ahead of the company's record Rs 30,000 crore IPO.
The Jio Platforms managing director said the company has developed an end-to-end technology stack that puts it in a strong position to capture opportunities across India's expanding digital market. The remarks come as Mukesh Ambani's telecom and digital services business prepares for what could become India's largest-ever IPO.
"We see $1.4 trillion digital economy by FY31. The end-to-end stack gives us the ability to capture a large market share for this," Akash Ambani said in a press conference ahead of the issue launch.
The projection forms a key part of Jio's case for a higher valuation as it prepares to enter the public market. The company is looking to convince investors that its next phase of growth will come from expanding digital services, technology platforms and enterprise businesses alongside its telecom operations.
Ambani highlighted Jio's investment in developing its own technology and intellectual property, saying the company has filed 7,200 patents so far. "We are the only Indian company among top 20 global companies in terms of patents filed. 7200 patents filed till now for Jio," he said.
He also pointed to Jio's network scale and low data prices as advantages that could help the company reach a larger number of Indian households. "Mission of Jio is connect every Indian home to highest order of digital services. We are the largest 5G base outside China. Our pricing per GB is the lowest anywhere in the world," Ambani said.
Jio entered India's telecom market in 2016 and quickly expanded its customer base by offering affordable data and free voice calling. The strategy helped make mobile internet accessible to millions of users and forced competing operators to cut prices.
The company has since expanded into home broadband, entertainment, cloud services, enterprise technology and artificial intelligence. Its large subscriber base also gives it an opportunity to sell additional digital services to existing customers.
The technology business is important to Jio's IPO pitch because investors are weighing the company's future earnings potential against that of established telecom operators such as Bharti Airtel.
Ambani said Jio's technology capabilities had also attracted partnerships with major global companies. "Some of the biggest global tech companies like Google have partnered with us," he said.
Google is among Jio Platforms' largest outside shareholders, with a 7.73% stake, while Meta holds about 9.98%. The two companies were among several global investors that backed Jio during its large private fundraising exercise in 2020.
Akash and Isha Ambani have been personally involved in taking the IPO pitch to global investors. The siblings have met institutional investors across the Americas, Europe and Southeast Asia, as Jio seeks to attract large funds ahead of its public listing.
The focus on technology comes as investors assess how Jio can increase earnings from its existing telecom customers while developing additional revenue streams.
Jio's subscriber base reached about 533 million at the end of June 2026. The company is looking to build on this reach through 5G services, fixed broadband, digital applications and enterprise offerings.
Jio Platforms has fixed a price band of Rs 1,065-1,119 per share for its upcoming IPO, which will open for public subscription on October 21 and close on October 23. The anchor investor book will open on October 19, while the shares are expected to list on October 28.
The company will issue up to 27 crore fresh equity shares, raising as much as Rs 30,213 crore at the upper end of the price band. The offering could surpass Hyundai Motor India's Rs 27,900 crore IPO in 2024 to become India's largest public issue.
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At the cap price, Jio Platforms is seeking a valuation of about Rs 10.3 lakh crore, or roughly $108 billion. The valuation is more than double the Rs 4.91 lakh crore equity valuation at which several financial investors entered the company in 2020.
The IPO will be entirely a fresh issue, with no offer-for-sale component. Existing investors, including Reliance Industries, Meta and Google, will retain their shares, although their percentage ownership will be diluted.
The company has reserved shares worth up to Rs 2,500 crore for eligible Reliance Industries shareholders and another Rs 500 crore for eligible employees. Retail investors can apply for a minimum of 12 shares, requiring Rs 13,428 at the upper price band.
Disclosure: This article has been written by Podishetti Akash, who is not a SEBI-registered Research Analyst or an Investment Adviser. Podishetti Akash and his ‘relative(s)’ (as defined under Section 2(77) of the Companies Act, 2013) do not hold any financial interest in the companies mentioned in this article as of the date of publication. The views/recommendations mentioned in this article, wherever applicable, are those of the respective SEBI-registered Research Analyst/brokerage and have been reproduced/reported with due attribution. They should not be construed as the views or recommendations of The Economic Times Digital or the journalist. Readers are advised to consider the original research report and make their investment decisions based on their own assessment. Brokerage disclosures here.
