Saudi Aramco set the largest initial public offering valuation in history when it listed in 2019.
The Saudi Arabian Oil Company sold shares on the Tadawul stock exchange in December 2019. The offering raised about $25.6 billion, and an additional-allotment option later lifted the proceeds to about $29.4 billion, making it the largest IPO recorded at the time.
The shares were priced at 32 Saudi riyals each, implying a company valuation of about $1.7 trillion at the offering. Saudi Aramco briefly reached a market value near $2 trillion during its early trading period, although market prices subsequently fluctuated.
Saudi Aramco is one of the world’s largest integrated energy companies and operates the Ghawar oil field, widely described as the world’s largest conventional oil field. Its IPO was much smaller in share percentage than many privatizations because the Saudi government retained overwhelming ownership.