Jio Platforms Replaces CEO Kiran Thomas With Pankaj Pawar As IPO Papers Reveal Leadership Overhaul

Jio Platforms quietly changed its chief executive three months before its draft initial public offering (IPO) papers became public. Kiran Thomas stepped down on 23 March, and Pankaj Pawar took charge the following day, 24 March, according to the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) submitted to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) in June.

The leadership change was not publicly announced at the time. Thomas, who served as president of Reliance Industries and had been the face of Jio Platforms at every annual general meeting since the digital arm launched, does not appear among the company's key managerial personnel in the draft prospectus.

Who Is Pankaj Pawar

Pawar, 53, has been with the Reliance Group since 2000 and brings close to three decades of experience in building and scaling large consumer and digital services businesses. He simultaneously serves as managing director of Reliance Jio Infocomm, the telecom operating subsidiary. Jio did not respond to a request for comment.

The Board Structure

The draft Jio IPO papers also lay out the governance structure that will be in place at listing:

• Mukesh D Ambani: Chairman and non-executive director

• Akash Ambani: Managing director

• Isha Ambani: Non-executive director

• Anant Ambani: Non-executive director

• Manoj Harjivandas Modi: Non-executive director

The IPO Details

Jio Platforms is seeking to raise approximately $4 billion, equivalent to around ₹37,700 crore, at a valuation of roughly $137 billion. The offering comprises a fresh issue of up to 27 crore shares with a face value of ₹10 each, representing approximately 2.9% of post-issue equity capital. The price band has not been disclosed and will be determined through a book-building process.

If the IPO goes through at the expected size, it would surpass Hyundai Motor India's ₹27,870 crore offering in 2024 to become the largest public issue in Indian stock market history. NSE has also filed papers to raise as much as $3.3 billion through its own IPO.

What Jio Platforms Is

Jio Platforms spans telecommunications, digital services, enterprise solutions and emerging technology. Its telecom unit, Reliance Jio Infocomm, is the world's second-largest mobile operator by subscribers within a single country, behind China Mobile.

Meta and Google are among its largest foreign shareholders. In 2020, the company raised over $20 billion from investors including Meta, Google, KKR, Silver Lake and General Atlantic at a valuation between $57 billion and $65 billion.

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