Reliance moves toward Jio listing as consumer revenue doubles
Reliance Industries filed preliminary papers for a Jio Platforms listing and reported a 25% revenue jump, signalling that its long-awaited digital valuation unlock and consumer goods expansion are advancing faster than expected.
Reliance Industries has formally initiated the public listing process for its telecom and digital arm, Jio Platforms, while posting a 25% year-on-year increase in first-quarter revenue to Rs 3.11 lakh crore. The company filed a draft red herring prospectus with market regulator SEBI, marking the most concrete step yet toward an offering that investors have anticipated for years. "The IPO will be an important milestone in Jio’s journey and will allow investors to participate in India’s digital growth story," said chairman Mukesh Ambani.
Consolidated net profit fell 22% to Rs 20,946 crore, but the decline is misleading. The year-ago period included an exceptional gain from the sale of an Asian Paints stake, which inflated the prior year's profit to Rs 26,994 crore. Stripping out that one-off, the underlying performance beat Street estimates.
Jio's operating metrics give the upcoming listing solid fundamental backing. EBITDA rose 15% year-on-year, supported by 150 basis points of margin expansion. Average revenue per user climbed to Rs 215.6, driven by a better subscriber mix, though promotional offers for fixed broadband provided a partial offset. "The digital services business continued its growth momentum during the quarter. Jio’s performance across mobility, home broadband and enterprise services remained strong, driving healthy earnings growth of 15% YoY," Ambani said.
Network engagement continues to deepen ahead of the float. Monthly data usage per capita reached 43.7 GB, pushing total data traffic up 27%. Customer retention improved, with monthly churn dropping to 1.6% and net subscriber additions reaching 8.9 million in the quarter.
Beyond telecom, Reliance is proving it can build scale in fast-moving consumer goods. Reliance Consumer Products more than doubled its gross revenue to over Rs 8,600 crore. The beverages division, led by the revived Campa brand, generated roughly Rs 2,900 crore in sales, securing double-digit market share in key regions and hitting more than half of its full-year sales target in just the first quarter.
Daily essentials under the Independence brand contributed about Rs 3,200 crore. Crucially, the unit is proving it can sell outside its parent's retail ecosystem. External channels now account for over 80% of Reliance Consumer's total sales, supported by a network of more than 5,000 distributors reaching 3 million retail outlets across over 40 international markets.
For the market, the quarter confirms Reliance is transitioning from a sprawling conglomerate into distinct, independently scalable businesses. The Jio prospectus will force a standalone valuation on India's largest digital platform, while the consumer arm's rapid distribution build-out establishes it as a credible challenger to established FMCG incumbents.
