Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. 's shares priced Thursday at $68 apiece, putting the Chinese company on track for an initial public offering that will raise at least $21.8 billion.

The price was at the top of the company's expected range of $66 to $68, which was increased from an initial $60 to $66.

The price gives the e-commerce company an initial market value of $168 billion, making it one of the 40 biggest public companies globally, according to S&P Capital IQ, and worth more than U.S. online- shopping giant Amazon.com Inc. Amazon is currently valued at $150 billion. (Latest:Who Got Shares in IPO | Live Analysis of Debut)

The deal sets the stage for the shares to begin trading Friday on the New York Stock Exchange, under the ticker symbol BABA, an event expected to be watched by investors world-wide.

Some analysts and investors have said the deal price gives the stock room to rise on the open market, though its performance could depend heavily on whether markets are volatile on Friday—possibly because of uncertainty around the long-term effects of Scotland's independence vote—and whether bankers correctly read the intentions of investors.