Alibaba Group conducted the world’s largest IPO before Saudi Aramco’s 2019 offering.
Alibaba raised about $25 billion when it listed on the New York Stock Exchange in September 2014. The offering was unusually large because investors were buying into a dominant Chinese e-commerce and internet-services group with a rapidly expanding consumer base.
Alibaba’s business includes online marketplaces, cloud computing, digital payments through associated businesses, logistics, and media. Its best-known marketplaces include Taobao and Tmall, which serve different parts of the Chinese retail market.
Saudi Aramco later surpassed Alibaba’s IPO record in 2019. An IPO record concerns money raised at listing, while a company’s market capitalization can be much higher or lower later because share prices change.