Alibaba raised about $25 billion in the world’s largest IPO in 2014.
Alibaba Group listed on the New York Stock Exchange on September 19, 2014. Its offering raised approximately $21.8 billion initially, and an overallotment option later increased the total to about $25 billion. The deal briefly made it the largest initial public offering ever.
Alibaba’s business covered online marketplaces such as Taobao and Tmall, along with cloud computing, logistics, digital media, and other services. The IPO gave international investors access to a major Chinese internet company through shares traded in the United States.
Saudi Aramco surpassed Alibaba’s record in 2019. The two offerings are sometimes compared as if they measured company size directly, but IPO proceeds measure newly sold shares, while market capitalization measures the value of all outstanding shares. Alibaba’s founder, Jack Ma, established the company in 1999.