Saudi Aramco was the world’s most valuable listed energy company after its 2019 IPO.
Saudi Aramco began trading on the Saudi Stock Exchange in December 2019. The offering valued the company at about $1.7 trillion, making it the largest initial public offering at that time and briefly making Saudi Aramco the world’s most valuable listed company.
The company is formally known as Saudi Arabian Oil Company. It is the national oil company of Saudi Arabia and operates across oil exploration, production, refining, chemicals, and distribution. Before the IPO, the company was wholly owned by the Saudi state.
Its offering was smaller than the percentage of shares originally discussed in early plans, but the valuation remained enormous. Saudi Aramco is often confused with Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund; they are separate entities, although the fund owns a major stake in Aramco.