Jio IPO May Seek Premium Over Bharti Airtel: What ₹11 Lakh Crore Valuation Means

Jio Platforms is reportedly targeting a valuation of around ₹11 lakh crore ($114 billion) for its upcoming initial public offering, putting the Reliance Industries-backed digital and telecom business close to Bharti Airtel in overall market value. At that valuation, analysts say Jio could command a premium on forward operating metrics, although the comparison with Airtel is more complicated than a simple market-cap ranking.

The reported valuation is lower than some of the $130 billion-$170 billion figures discussed earlier in the IPO process, reflecting a more cautious pricing environment in Indian equities. Even so, the proposed issue could still become India’s largest-ever IPO, with the shares being offered estimated at about $3.4 billion, or roughly ₹32,000-32,500 crore. The company has not yet officially announced the final price band or issue dates.

Key takeaways

• Jio Platforms is reportedly seeking an IPO valuation of about ₹11 lakh crore, or $114 billion.
• Motilal Oswal estimates this would imply roughly 12 times FY28E EV/EBITDA for Jio.
• That compares with about 10.3 times for Bharti Airtel’s India business, implying a roughly 17% premium on that measure.
• Bloomberg Intelligence sees Jio at around 12-13 times forward EV/EBITDA versus roughly 9.5 times for Airtel.
• Jio’s reported grey market premium has risen to around ₹167-170 from ₹148-150, although GMP is unofficial and highly volatile.
• The proposed issue could raise around $3.4 billion and surpass Hyundai Motor India’s ₹27,870 crore IPO.
• Jio has filed for a fresh issue of up to 27 crore shares, representing about 2.93% of post-issue equity.
• Final valuation, price band and IPO dates remain subject to the company’s formal disclosures.

Why Jio is being compared with Bharti Airtel

The Bharti Airtel comparison is central to the Jio IPO because both companies compete directly in India’s wireless and broadband markets.

Jio has built the larger consumer connectivity base. Its FY26 disclosures show 524.4 million customers, while the draft prospectus reported Bharti Airtel’s consolidated customer base at 666 million because Airtel also includes its African operations. On an India-only basis, Airtel had 482.4 million customers in the same comparison.

Jio also reported an exit-quarter ARPU of ₹214 in March 2026. Bharti Airtel’s India mobile ARPU was considerably higher at ₹257.2.

That difference illustrates why investors cannot value the two companies solely on subscriber numbers. Jio has enormous scale and higher data consumption, while Airtel currently generates higher revenue per mobile customer and stronger returns on capital.

Jio’s FY26 data consumption reached 241.4 billion GB, compared with 184.5 billion GB in FY25. Its monthly data consumption per customer increased to 42.3 GB from 33.6 GB.

The investment question is therefore whether Jio deserves to be valued primarily as a telecom operator or as a broader digital platform with future opportunities in cloud, enterprise services, AI, connected devices and other digital businesses.

The ₹11 lakh crore valuation is already close to some analyst estimates

The reported ₹11 lakh crore valuation is not completely disconnected from earlier institutional estimates.

Motilal Oswal Financial Services said its current ascribed valuation for Jio Platforms was around ₹11.2 lakh crore. At the reported IPO valuation, the brokerage estimates Jio would trade at about 12 times FY28E EV/EBITDA.

For comparison, Motilal Oswal calculated Bharti Airtel’s India business at about 10.3 times FY28E EV/EBITDA after excluding Indus Towers, Airtel Africa and Hexacom’s minority interest.

That creates an implied premium of roughly 17% for Jio on this particular forward operating metric.

The distinction is important. A premium EV/EBITDA multiple does not automatically mean Jio is more profitable or financially superior to Airtel. Rather, it indicates that investors could be asked to pay more for each unit of expected operating earnings.

Bloomberg Intelligence sees an even wider premium

Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Chris Muckensturm has also indicated that Jio could maintain a premium valuation even at the lower reported IPO valuation.

According to Business Today, Jio could command a forward EV/EBITDA multiple of around 12-13 times, compared with about 9.5 times for Bharti Airtel.

The argument for that premium rests partly on Jio’s market position, growth opportunities and broader digital ecosystem.

But the premium also creates a higher expectation bar. If Jio is priced materially above Airtel, investors will expect stronger growth, monetisation or strategic optionality to justify that difference.

Jio is already a large, profitable business

The IPO story is not based only on future potential.

Jio Platforms reported ₹1.47 lakh crore in revenue from operations in FY26, up from ₹1.28 lakh crore in FY25. EBITDA increased to ₹76,255 crore from ₹64,170 crore, while EBITDA margin improved to 51.91%.

Profit after tax rose to ₹30,049 crore in FY26 from ₹26,109 crore in FY25.

Reliance’s FY26 disclosures also show that Jio’s gross revenue reached ₹1.72 lakh crore, while its customer base crossed 524 million.

This gives public-market investors a business with significant existing cash generation rather than a loss-making technology company dependent entirely on distant future growth.

At the same time, Jio remains capital intensive. Telecommunications networks require continuing investment in spectrum, fibre, 5G infrastructure, broadband and other technology.

That is one reason the use of IPO proceeds will matter.

Where will the Jio IPO money go?

The proposed offering consists of a fresh issue rather than a conventional promoter sell-down.

Jio Platforms’ board approved a DRHP in June for an IPO of up to 27 crore new equity shares with a face value of ₹10 each. The proposed shares represent about 2.93% of the post-issue equity capital.

The company’s IPO documents indicate that a substantial portion of the proceeds will be directed toward reducing borrowings.

CRISIL Ratings said Jio Platforms planned to use ₹27,500 crore of the fresh issue proceeds toward prepayment of borrowings.

This means the IPO has a balance-sheet component as well as a valuation-discovery component. Bringing Jio into the public market could give investors direct exposure to the business while simultaneously providing the company with additional financial flexibility.

Reuters has reported that the overall issue could raise approximately $3.8 billion, although more recent valuation reports and the reported reduction in the proposed float suggest the final amount and structure may still evolve.

Fresh GMP rises, but investors should be careful

Jio Platforms’ grey market premium has become another major talking point ahead of the IPO.

Business Today reported that the unofficial GMP had risen to around ₹167-170 per share from approximately ₹148-150 previously.

Some market sources have also suggested a possible price band of around ₹1,150-1,200 per share. However, Business Today explicitly noted that it could not independently verify those price-band claims.

The distinction between official IPO information and grey-market information is particularly important here.

GMP is an unofficial market indicator based on transactions or expectations outside the formal stock exchange process. It is not set by Jio Platforms, SEBI or the stock exchanges, and it can change sharply before listing.

Therefore, a ₹167-170 GMP should not be interpreted as a guaranteed listing gain.

The final issue price, subscription demand, broader market conditions and the eventual listing valuation will ultimately determine investor returns.

Why Jio’s premium over Airtel is controversial

There are arguments on both sides of the valuation debate.

The case for a premium

Jio has built a massive integrated digital ecosystem around its telecom network.

Its businesses span mobile connectivity, fixed broadband, digital services, enterprise connectivity and technology platforms. The company is also positioning itself around emerging areas such as artificial intelligence, cloud services and connected digital products.

Its network scale is another major advantage. Jio reported more than 524 million customers and 191 million-plus 5G customers as of March 2026.

The company also recorded strong growth in data usage, indicating that customers are consuming increasingly large quantities of digital content and services through its network.

A public listing could allow investors to value these businesses separately from Reliance Industries and potentially assign greater value to Jio’s technology optionality.

The case for Airtel

Bharti Airtel, however, has several financial advantages.

Airtel’s India mobile ARPU of ₹257.2 in March 2026 was substantially above Jio’s ₹214. The DRHP comparison also showed Airtel with stronger return metrics.

Motilal Oswal highlighted Airtel’s superior free cash flow generation and higher return on capital employed.

Airtel also has businesses outside India, including its African operations, as well as stakes in Indus Towers and Nxtra’s data-centre operations.

Consequently, applying a discount to Airtel simply because Jio receives a premium multiple may not be justified.

Could the Jio IPO trigger a telecom re-rating?

The listing could have implications beyond Jio itself.

Motilal Oswal believes the IPO could eventually become a catalyst for valuation re-rating across the telecom sector, particularly if investors begin to anticipate higher mobile tariffs.

Indian telecom operators have been waiting for tariff increases to improve monetisation and average revenue per user.

The brokerage currently builds in a roughly 15% smartphone tariff hike in December 2026 and expects that to contribute to stronger earnings growth.

This remains an analyst forecast rather than a confirmed industry decision.

The timing is significant because Jio’s IPO would create a new listed benchmark for the country’s largest wireless operator. Investors could use Jio’s market valuation as a reference point when assessing Airtel and Vodafone Idea.

What happens to Reliance Industries?

The IPO could also change how investors value Reliance Industries.

RIL owns approximately 66.4% of Jio Platforms. Once Jio becomes separately listed, investors will have a direct market price for that stake.

That creates a clearer basis for calculating the value of RIL’s holding.

However, Motilal Oswal noted that a holding-company discount could potentially be applied to RIL’s Jio stake after the listing.

The brokerage also said that RIL’s valuation already reflects a substantial holdco discount, meaning the actual impact of Jio’s listing will depend on how investors revalue the rest of Reliance’s businesses.

RIL would continue to provide exposure to retail, oil-to-chemicals, new energy, consumer businesses, data centres and other growth opportunities in addition to Jio.

Why the valuation target has come down

Earlier expectations for Jio’s IPO valuation were substantially higher.

When the company filed its draft prospectus in June, market estimates reportedly ranged from about $130 billion to as high as $170 billion.

The latest reported target of approximately $114 billion represents a significant reset.

The change illustrates the effect of market conditions on even the country’s most anticipated IPOs.

Indian equities have experienced periods of weakness, while several large IPOs have had to balance ambitious valuations against institutional investor demand.

The reported Jio valuation is therefore better understood as a compromise between the company’s scale and growth prospects and the price public-market investors may currently be willing to pay.

What the Jio IPO could mean for investors

The central issue is not whether Jio is a large or profitable company. It clearly is.

The question is whether the IPO valuation adequately compensates investors for the company’s risks while leaving enough upside for public-market shareholders.

At around ₹11 lakh crore, Jio would be valued at a premium to Airtel on some forward operating measures. Investors would therefore be paying for Jio’s combination of scale, network leadership, digital ecosystem and future monetisation potential.

The counterargument is that Airtel already demonstrates stronger ARPU and free-cash-flow characteristics, while Jio still has to prove that its broader digital ecosystem can generate returns commensurate with the premium investors may assign to it.

The bigger picture

The Jio Platforms IPO is important because it will provide India’s public markets with a direct valuation for one of the country’s largest digital businesses.

For Reliance Industries, the listing could unlock a transparent market value for its Jio stake. For Bharti Airtel, it will create a newly listed competitor against which investors can make a direct valuation comparison.

The outcome could also influence the broader telecom sector, particularly expectations around tariffs, ARPU growth, capital expenditure and future consolidation.

Looking Ahead

The immediate milestones are the final IPO price band, the red herring prospectus and the official subscription dates. Reports currently point to an IPO opening around October 21 and a potential listing around October 28, but these dates have not been formally confirmed by Jio Platforms and could change.

For investors, the more important number may ultimately be the valuation relative to operating performance rather than the grey-market premium. Jio’s customer scale, ₹214 ARPU, 51.9% FY26 EBITDA margin and expanding digital businesses provide a strong foundation, but the market will decide whether those strengths justify a premium to Bharti Airtel.