Saudi Aramco reached a roughly $2 trillion valuation when it began trading publicly in December 2019.
Saudi Aramco’s initial public offering took place on the Saudi Stock Exchange, known as Tadawul, in December 2019. Its shares rose after listing, briefly giving the company a market value near the $2 trillion target discussed by Saudi officials before the IPO.
The offering was notable because Saudi Aramco was already one of the world’s largest companies by revenue, production, and reserves. The IPO sold only a minority stake, while the Saudi government retained overwhelming ownership and control.
This event is often confused with the largest IPO by proceeds. Saudi Aramco’s offering raised about $25.6 billion initially, and an additional share-allocation option later increased the total to about $29.4 billion, making it the largest IPO at that time.