SecondMarket was founded in 2004 and has gone through several iterations of its business. An early pioneer in the private secondary market, the company developed a platform for trading shares of Facebook and other in-demand startups.

Making private markets look more like public markets. NASDAQ has agreed to buy SecondMarket and combine forces with the NASDAQ Private Market. The group will facilitate the exchange of shares for private companies, including DocuSign, Pinterest, Shazam and Tango.