Saudi Aramco held the world’s largest IPO when it began trading in December 2019. The company raised about $25.6 billion by selling shares on the Saudi Stock Exchange, known as Tadawul, and later increased the total to roughly $29.4 billion through an overallotment option.
Saudi Aramco is the national oil company of Saudi Arabia and is formally known as Saudi Arabian Oil Company. Its public listing represented only a small portion of the company, while the Saudi government retained overwhelming ownership. The offering was central to plans associated with Saudi Vision 2030 and economic diversification.
The IPO is often confused with the largest market-cap debut. Those are different measures: an IPO ranks by money raised, while market capitalization depends on the value assigned to all outstanding shares. Saudi Aramco’s listing valuation also made it one of the world’s largest companies by market value.