Saudi Aramco was the first publicly traded company to reach a $2 trillion market capitalization during its 2019 stock-market debut.
Saudi Aramco listed its shares on Tadawul in December 2019 after an initial public offering in Saudi Arabia. On December 12, the stock rose to its daily limit, bringing the company's market capitalization to approximately $2 trillion. The valuation made Aramco briefly more valuable than Apple, which had previously set the public-company record at $1 trillion.
The offering was part of Saudi Arabia's broader economic strategy associated with Vision 2030. A portion of the company was sold to public investors, while the Saudi government retained overwhelming ownership. Because only a small percentage of shares were available to trade, the quoted share price still implied a value for the entire company.
The figure was an estimate based on the public share price and total shares outstanding. Market capitalization is not the same as the amount of money raised in an IPO; an offering sells only a portion of a company's equity.