India’s Jio Platforms faces questions over its debt obligations, future tax payments and valuation ahead of a proposed INR302.13 billion (US$3.2 billion), according to GlobalData.
At close of India’s stock exchange today (October 23), Jio Platforms gained US$24.5 billion in investor bids, surpassing its initial public offering of US$3.2 billion 10 times over.
Jio has more than 524 million subscribers and controls nearly half of India’s wireless market. Its businesses span 5G, fixed wireless broadband, enterprise connectivity, cloud services and digital applications.
Revenue reportedly reached INR1.46 trillion (US$15.3 billion) in FY26, while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) stood at around INR762.55 billion.
However, GlobalData company profiles analyst Murthy Grandhi said the company’s headline financial figures did not fully reflect its long-term obligations and potential cash-flow pressures.
Jio has around INR1.04 trillion in deferred spectrum payment obligations, which are excluded from its reported net debt and will not be repaid using IPO proceeds. The company reported net debt of approximately INR95.39 billion at the end of June.
Almost all IPO proceeds are intended to repay bank borrowings at Reliance Jio Infocomm (telco and digital services), potentially reducing interest costs. However, the relatively small amount of reported net debt compared with the proposed offering raises questions over the role of the wider spectrum liabilities and other commitments in the company’s financial structure.
Tax payments are another potential pressure point. Jio reported pretax profit of INR403.53 billion in FY26 but paid just INR1.18 billion in cash taxes, while recording more than INR100 billion in deferred tax expense.
Heavy investment in network infrastructure has generated tax benefits through accelerated depreciation. GlobalData said this tax shield could be largely exhausted around FY29, potentially pushing annual cash tax payments towards INR110 billion or more.
The resulting increase in tax outflows could put pressure on free cash flow as Jio continues to meet its spectrum obligations and fund growth. GlobalData said the company would need further tariff increases, customer upgrades and expansion in home broadband and enterprise services to sustain cash generation.
A monthly ARPU increase of INR10 across Jio’s subscriber base could generate more than INR60 billion in additional annual revenue, according to Grandhi. However, India’s price-sensitive market means higher tariffs could also affect subscriber growth.
Jio’s customer churn rate of 1.67% is lower than Bharti Airtel’s 2.43%, suggesting its wider digital services ecosystem is helping retain users.
Valuation could also prove contentious. While Jio appears cheaper than Airtel on a price-to-earnings basis, GlobalData said this comparison is affected by Jio’s unusually low current cash-tax payments. On enterprise value to EBITDA, a measure commonly used to compare capital-intensive telecoms operators, Jio appears to command a premium to Airtel despite lower ARPU and returns on capital employed.
Grandhi said Jio’s scale, customer retention and digital services business offered investors a compelling growth opportunity, but the IPO’s longer-term performance would depend on its ability to convert that scale into stronger, more diversified cash flow while managing its financial obligations.