Lucknow: Reliance Jio, which entered the Indian telecom market about a decade ago, is now preparing to start its new innings in the stock market. But the story of the beginning of this company is not related to any big business plan, but to a college assignment, which could not be uploaded due to poor internet connection. This problem gave birth to the idea of improving digital connectivity in India and later laid the foundation of a big business journey in the form of Jio.
Company director Isha Ambani shared this story in the media meet of Jio Platforms held on October 15. He told that around the year 2009-10, he and his brother Akash Ambani were studying in America. While visiting home in Mumbai for holidays, Isha had to submit her college assignment, but the internet connection was not working. After this experience, the status of internet and digital facilities in India was discussed. Akash Ambani's idea was that this problem of the country could be solved through a digital technology platform company. According to a 2018 report by Business Standard, Mukesh Ambani had also mentioned this incident in the year 2011.
Jio launched in 2016, changed the telecom market
Reliance Jio was launched in September 2016. The company entered the market with a network based entirely on 4G LTE technology. Jio intensified competition in the telecom sector by providing free voice calls and data at very low prices.
According to Mukesh Ambani's statement published in Business Standard, before the arrival of Jio, India was ranked 155th in the world in terms of mobile broadband data consumption. In less than two years of Jio's launch, the country reached the top position in the list. Offering cheap internet and free calling brought a large number of people to the mobile internet.
10 crore customers in 170 days, 30 crore customers in two and a half years
Jio got tremendous response in the initial phase itself. According to Reliance Jio's media release of 21 February 2017, the company had crossed the mark of 100 million subscribers in just 170 days.
Even after this the company's momentum continued. According to Business Today report, by March 2019, Jio had approximately 30 crore subscribers. In comparison, it was said in the report that it took about 19 years for Bharti Airtel to reach this level. Jio's rapid growth affected the competition and business practices of the Indian telecom market.
Rs 1.52 lakh crore raised from 13 investors during the pandemic
The year 2020 brought another important phase for Jio Platforms amid the Corona epidemic. According to The News Minute report, the company raised a total of Rs 1,52,056 crore from 13 investors within a few months. In return, investors were given a total of 32.94 percent stake in Jio Platforms.
Facebook became the first major investor in this investment round, taking a 9.99 percent stake. Google invested with a 7.7 percent stake. Other investors also included KKR, Silver Lake, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and Abu Dhabi's Mubadala.
Isha Ambani also told in the media meet that despite the challenges of Covid-19, Reliance Industries had achieved the target of becoming debt free in the year 2020 itself. The company achieved this feat nine months ahead of its 2021 target.
Akash Ambani gets command of Jio
With the growth of Jio, there was a change in the leadership of the company. According to Quartz report, Akash Ambani was appointed chairman of Reliance Jio Infocomm in June 2022. At the same time, Mukesh Ambani remained the chairman of Jio Platforms.
More than 52 crore customers, speed on 5G network also
Nearly 10 years after its launch, Jio's business has reached a huge level. According to ICICI Direct's summary based on the company's offer document, Reliance Jio Infocomm had 52.44 crore subscribers as of March 31, 2026. According to the report of Daily Pioneer, by March 2026, 26.85 crore of these customers had come on 5G network.
In the financial year 2025-26, Jio Platforms recorded a revenue of Rs 1,46,885 crore, while the company's profit after tax stood at Rs 30,049 crore. These figures reflect the increasing scale of the company's business.
Focus on new technologies with 6,817 patents
Jio's expansion is not limited to telecom services only. According to the report of Fintech Business News, till March 2026, Jio Platforms had filed 6,817 patents. These also include patents related to 6G and satellite technology. According to the report, the company joined the top 20 companies in the world in terms of international patent filings.
Jio Platforms Managing Director Akash Ambani said in the media meet that the company has created a base of 53 crore customers in the last decade. He said that Jio aims to deliver high-quality and affordable digital services to every Indian home, citizen and enterprise.
Now preparing to enter the stock market through IPO
The story that started with a problem in uploading a college assignment has now reached the stage of entry into the stock market. According to ICICI Direct, the IPO of Jio Platforms is scheduled to open on October 21 and close on October 23.
In the media meet, Isha Ambani also mentioned the history of Reliance. He reminded that about 50 years ago, in the year 1977, his grandfather Dhirubhai Ambani had brought the IPO of Reliance Industries.
The proposed listing for Jio will be a new chapter in its business journey. After reaching millions of customers and expanding digital services in a decade, the company is now in the sights of investors. Jio's story shows how this idea, which started from a small internet problem, transformed into a big digital business.
Also read: Investors have tremendous confidence in Jio IPO! Demand of Rs 2.5 lakh crore for anchor book of Rs 8,110 crore
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