A Market for Illiquid Assets?

What if there were a market for unregistered private company stock? Barry E. Silbert, a former investment banker who specialized in financial restructurings, is trying to make that a reality with SecondMarket.

SecondMarket matches investors with shareholders to trade shares of private companies for a fee of 2 percent from each side. There are significant questions as to whether such a market can succeed without running afoul of the Securities and Exchange Commission requirements for trading unregistered securities, but it is an intriguing concept.