• Reuters, Monday, March 7, 2011 11:13 AM

Is Twitter now worth $7.7 billion -- more than twice its valuation when it last received funding in December? It is, according to a recent auction of company shares on the secondary market, Reuters reports. Last week, investors agreed to pay $34.50 a share for the top microblogging platform in the auction conducted by Sharespost, an exchange for private company shares.

Based on the 223.7 million estimated fully diluted shares of Twitter listed by Sharespost on its site, the deal would suggest a valuation of roughly $7.7 billion, Reuters estimates. Secondary markets, which let qualified investors trade shares of privately held companies, have recently surged in popularity as speculators clamor to get in on the next big tech IPO. Likewise, an investment firm last week reportedly bought 2.5 million Facebook shares on a secondary market in a deal valuing the company at $65 billion.

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