Saudi Aramco raised the largest initial public offering ever when it listed in December 2019.
Saudi Aramco sold shares on the Saudi Stock Exchange, known as Tadawul, in December 2019. The offering raised about $25.6 billion, making it the largest IPO at the time. An additional over-allotment option later increased the reported proceeds to approximately $29.4 billion.
The listing gave outside investors a stake in Saudi Arabia’s state-controlled oil company, although the government retained overwhelming ownership. Saudi Aramco is one of the world’s largest integrated energy companies and controls enormous oil reserves and production capacity.
The IPO was part of Saudi Arabia’s economic diversification agenda associated with Vision 2030. Its initial trading surge briefly pushed the company’s market value toward the $2 trillion figure. Alibaba’s 2014 listing had previously held the record for the largest IPO by proceeds.