Jio rises 22% above its issue price in India's grey market

Investors fortunate enough to be allotted shares in Jio Platforms Ltds $3.1 billion IPOIndias record-breaking offeringare trading in the unofficial grey market, leading the market to expect a strong debut on the stocks first day of listing. The telecom-digital giant owned by billionaire Mukesh Ambani drew enthusiastic subscriptions from a wide range of investors ahead of its October 28 listing. Investors who received allotments on Tuesday are closely watching Jios grey-market premium to gauge first-day trading. According to data from ipowatch.in and investorgain.com, the stocks grey-market premium has held steady at about 22% over the past ten daysunusual resilience for an offering of this size. The grey-market premium is unregulated and does not represent the actual trading price once the stock officially lists on the exchange. But in India, it is widely regarded as a barometer of demand and listing sentiment. If that premium level carries through to listing, Jio will become Indias second-most-valuable company, behind only its parent Reliance Industries, with rival Bharti Airtel dropping to third place. That expectation has further heated up an IPO that has already set a record in Indias capital markets. Jio attracted more than $78 billion in subscription funds, with nearly 14 million applicationsmaking it one of Indias most closely watched listings.