The issue was solely managed by DSP Merrill Lynch. Reliance which had aimed at picking up Rs 100 crore, received overwhelming subscription and closed the issue after it had garnered Rs 225 crore. It has retained the oversubscription. "The issue was subscribed to by banks, mutual funds and corporates," a source said. A release issued by Reliance said that the debt issue was placed with over 20 investors. "It was the tightest priced issue of one-year bonds from a corporate issuer this year," a release said.

Earlier the company privately placed Rs 50 crore worth of short-term non-convertible debentures (NCDs) linked to the Reuter Mumbai interbank overnight rate (RMIOR). The nine-month instrument carried a bullet repayment on March 15, 1999.