Which oil company became the world’s largest IPO when it listed shares in 2019?

Saudi Aramco became the world’s largest IPO when it listed shares in 2019.

The Saudi Arabian Oil Company, commonly called Saudi Aramco, began trading on the Saudi Exchange in December 2019. Its initial public offering raised about $25.6 billion, giving the company an initial valuation of roughly $1.7 trillion. An additional share-allotment option later increased the proceeds to about $29.4 billion.

Saudi Aramco is majority-owned by the government of Saudi Arabia and is one of the world’s most valuable publicly traded companies by market capitalization. The company’s operations span crude-oil production, refining, natural gas, chemicals, and petroleum distribution.

The IPO is sometimes confused with the earlier 2007 listing of PetroChina, which briefly became the world’s most valuable company on its first trading day. Aramco’s record concerns the amount raised in an IPO, not a permanent ranking by market value.