- Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) has moved into first place in global initial public offering underwriting through September 2026, edging out Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) after working on major listings including SpaceX, SK Hynix and the National Stock Exchange of India.
The ranking, based on data compiled by Bloomberg, highlights how a small number of exceptionally large transactions have shaped the investment-banking market this year. Citi was just ahead of Goldman in global IPO underwriting, while Goldman retained the leading position for the broader category of equity offerings, which also includes follow-on share sales and block trades.
Citi's first-place IPO ranking reflects its work on new stock listings rather than overall equity issuance.
SpaceX and SK Hynix Drive Citi's IPO Ranking
Several of the year's largest offerings have contributed to Citi's position in the global IPO league tables. Citi was among the banks involved in SpaceX's June IPO, which became one of the largest public offerings ever. SpaceX priced 555.6 million shares at $135 each before exercising the underwriters' full overallotment option.
The completed offering ultimately covered 638.9 million shares and generated approximately $85.7 billion in gross proceeds. Citi was one of the book-running managers alongside Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, JPMorgan and other banks.
The size of that transaction alone demonstrates why the 2026 IPO rankings can shift sharply based on participation in a handful of mega-deals. Citi also served as lead global coordinator for SK Hynix Inc.'s (KRX: 000660) $26.5 billion Nasdaq listing in July, which Bloomberg's report described as the largest US share sale by a foreign company.
The South Korean semiconductor company's listing came during a period of exceptionally strong investor interest in artificial intelligence infrastructure and semiconductor spending. That broader technology investment cycle has also supported the market's appetite for large AI-related technology stocks.
Citi was also involved in the $2.4 billion listing of the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd. in September, one of the largest IPOs in India's history. The offering added another major transaction to Citi's 2026 underwriting tally just as the global IPO market entered the final quarter.
The NSE deal also reflects the growing importance of India in global equity markets. The exchange's public debut followed roughly a decade of preparations and gave investors direct access to one of India's most important market-infrastructure businesses.
The concentration of activity in mega-IPOs is significant because the broader market has not been uniformly strong. Companies globally raised more than $1 trillion through equity offerings during the first nine months of 2026, according to Mergermarket data cited by The Wall Street Journal, but the market has increasingly favored very large technology and AI-related transactions.
Citi Expands Equity-Capital Markets Operation
Citi's rise in IPO underwriting also comes as the bank has been expanding its equity-capital-markets operation and recruiting senior investment bankers.
Bloomberg reported that Citi has added dozens of senior bankers globally. The firm hired Charlie Black from Goldman Sachs last year to lead North America technology equity capital markets and brought in Bernal J. Vargas III from JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) as head of North American equity capital markets. Citi also appointed Rob Chan to lead equity-capital-markets syndication in Asia.
Those appointments point to a strategy focused on increasing Citi's presence in the business of bringing companies to public markets and advising clients on equity financing.
The timing is notable because the 2026 IPO market has produced both record-sized offerings and signs of cooling activity. The Wall Street Journal reported that several companies, including Oura, SB Energy and Nscale, have delayed planned listings as investors become more cautious about valuations, interest rates and the outlook for AI-related businesses.
The Financial Times similarly reported that overall US IPO activity slowed after Labor Day, even as headline proceeds remained elevated because of enormous transactions such as SpaceX and SK Hynix.
That creates a more complicated backdrop for investment banks. A strong IPO ranking can reflect successful execution on a relatively small number of very large offerings, while a weaker pipeline of smaller listings could still affect equity-capital-markets revenue in future quarters.
For Citi, the immediate result is a stronger position in the global IPO underwriting rankings. The bank's participation in SpaceX, SK Hynix and NSE gives it a significant presence across the US, Asian and Indian primary markets.
Goldman Sachs, however, remains ahead when the measurement expands beyond IPOs to the broader equity-offering market.
The distinction means Citi's new No. 1 IPO position should not be interpreted as a broader takeover of global equity underwriting. Instead, it marks a significant improvement in the bank's standing in one specific part of the capital-markets business.
The trend also adds another dimension to the SpaceX IPO and other blockbuster listings that have made 2026 an unusually large year for public-market fundraising.