Forge
Forge operates a regulated digital marketplace for secondary trading of pre-IPO company shares, serving accredited investors, institutional asset managers, employee shareholders, and private companies across 5,500+ issuers with proprietary pricing and index products; acquired by Charles Schwab in March 2026.
- Company typePublic
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount251–500
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Forge does
Forge Global operates a regulated digital marketplace for secondary trading of shares in private, pre-IPO companies, connecting employee shareholders seeking liquidity with accredited and institutional investors seeking pre-IPO exposure. Founded in 2014 and headquartered in San Francisco with offices in New York, London, and Berlin, Forge served 890,000+ registered users across 5,500+ companies and had facilitated over $18 billion in cumulative transaction volume across 32,000+ trades as of March 2026. The platform served eight primary customer segments: employee shareholders, accredited investors, seed/angel investors, asset managers and hedge funds, family offices, venture capital firms, wealth managers and RIAs, and the private companies themselves.
The product portfolio spans trading (Forge Marketplace for self-serve accredited investors; Forge Pro for institutional brokerage with trade management, compliance, and analytics), data (Forge Price, a proprietary daily indicative price for approximately 200 pre-IPO companies; Forge Data via API and web; thematic baskets covering AI, Aerospace & Defense, Chips, Consumer, and Fintech), indexes (Forge Private Market Index and Forge Accuidity Private Market Index tracking 60+ constituents), and complementary services including Forge Liquidity Programs (tender offers and structured liquidity), Forge Trust (self-directed IRAs), and Forge Lending (options exercise bridge loans). Broker-dealer services are conducted through wholly-owned FINRA/SIPC member subsidiary Forge Securities LLC.
Revenue is generated primarily through transaction fees of typically 2-4% on direct secondaries, with data subscriptions, institutional brokerage, professional services for liquidity programs, and index licensing as secondary streams. Following Charles Schwab Corporation's $660 million all-cash acquisition completed on March 2, 2026, Forge operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary with access to Schwab's 39.1 million active brokerage accounts.
Forge firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Forge
- Legal name
- Forge Global, Inc.
- Website
- https://forgeglobal.com
- Company type
- Public
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Acquired
- Headcount range
- 251–500 employees
- Short description
- Forge operates a regulated digital marketplace for secondary trading of pre-IPO company shares, serving accredited investors, institutional asset managers, employee shareholders, and private companies across 5,500+ issuers with proprietary pricing and index products; acquired by Charles Schwab in March 2026.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Forge industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Private Securities Trading
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (5132), Graphic Design Services (54143)
- SIC
- Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211), Security & Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges & Services (6200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Copy Trading, Social Trading & Automated Trading Platforms (FSADAAAK)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Professional Certification & Training Content Publishing (Exam Prep, CE/CPD) (MPAJACAL)
Keywords
Where Forge is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
Forge business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others
Revenue model
- Transaction Fees: Forge charges transaction fees for facilitating secondary market trades in private company shares. The fee for direct secondaries is typically 2-4%, though it can be as low as 0% in some instances. Fees depend on transaction size, market dynamics, investment types, and customer lifetime transaction volume.
- Data Services: Revenue from providing Forge Data solutions including same-day pricing information, API access, and file-based data delivery for portfolio management and risk analysis tools.
- Institutional Brokerage Services: Forge Pro platform provides institutional trading capabilities with advanced analytics and trade execution services for sophisticated investors including venture capital firms, hedge funds, and family offices.
- Liquidity Program Services: Forge provides technology and expertise to help private companies establish and manage liquidity solutions for employees, including tender offers and customized programs.
- Index Licensing: Forge licenses its proprietary indexes including the Forge Accuidity Private Market Index to asset managers, index providers, and financial data organizations for use in investment products.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Direct Secondary Transactions |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Alternative Investment Structures |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Forge Funds Minimum Investment |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels8 records
Marketing channels7 records
Forge product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Forge operates a digital private securities marketplace that facilitates secondary market trading in shares of pre-IPO and private companies, enabling accredited investors and institutions to buy and sell equity in venture-backed issuers. The platform combines a self-serve trading marketplace, institutional brokerage (Forge Pro), proprietary daily pricing for approximately 200 pre-IPO companies (Forge Price), private market data feeds and APIs, benchmark indexes, and company-sponsored employee liquidity programs including tender offers and customized offerings.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Forge Marketplace: Next-generation marketplace for trading private company shares
- Forge Pro
- Forge Price
- Forge Data
- Forge Private Market Index
- Forge Accuidity Private Market Index
- Forge Thematic Baskets
- Forge Trust
- Forge Private Company Solutions
- Forge Liquidity Programs
Products and services
- Forge Marketplace Self-serve digital marketplace where accredited investors and employee shareholders discover, evaluate, and execute secondary market trades in private company shares, with real-time pricing insights and live market signals.
- Forge Pro Institutional trading platform for sophisticated investors such as VCs, hedge funds, and family offices, providing deep analytics to monitor live secondary market data and execute transactions, with trade management, price discovery, firmographic data, and risk and compliance features.
- Forge Data Comprehensive data solution providing same-day pricing for private market assets via web application, API integration, or file-based format, capturing every trade, bid, ask and more for portfolio and risk management tools.
- Forge Price Proprietary indicative price calculated daily for approximately 200 pre-IPO venture-backed late-stage companies, synthesizing secondary market transactions, recent funding rounds, and indications of interest to deliver timely price discovery.
- Forge Private Market Index Equal-weighted benchmark index reflecting the up-to-date performance and pricing activity of venture-backed late-stage companies actively traded in the private market, with daily valuation and annual rebalance.
- Forge Accuidity Private Market Index Cap-weighted custom index tracking over 60 privately held, late-stage venture-backed US companies, with constituents weighted by Forge Price Implied Valuations and capped at 7.5% with excess distributed pro-rata; available to qualified purchasers.
- Forge Thematic Baskets Structured insights into specific sectors of the private market including Artificial Intelligence, Aerospace & Defense, Chips, Consumer, and Fintech themes, using rules-based company selection.
- Forge Liquidity Programs Company-sponsored liquidity solutions for private companies including tender offers and customized ongoing programs, enabling employees to access liquidity while companies maintain control over pricing and the cap table.
- Forge Options Exercise Bridge Loan Lending solution providing employees with funds to exercise vested private company stock options and sell the resulting stock without upfront cash expense.
- Forge Trust Self-directed IRA platform enabling investment in private companies and other alternative assets through tax-advantaged retirement accounts.
Quantifiable outcome
- 110% increase in trading volume for first half of 2025
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Forge
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments9 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Forge technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
AI capability4 records
Feature7 records
Forge partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Tema ETFscoreTema launched the Tema Space Innovators ETF (NASA) using Forge's secondary market SPV structure to provide 10% direct exposure to SpaceX. The fund is actively managed at 75 basis points.
- VanEckminorVanEck was selected to manage the Closed-End Fund following Linqto's Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization, with Forge Global serving as Liquidating Trustee.
- London Stock ExchangecoreForge Europe UK Ltd became a Registered Auction Agent on the London Stock Exchange's newly launched Private Securities Market, enabled by UK government's PISCES legislation. Provides auction-based access to buy and sell private company shares.
- Silicon Valley BankminorSilicon Valley Bank partnered with Forge to provide private market liquidity to innovation economy clients through the Forge platform.
- Accuidity Capital ManagementcoreForge completed acquisition of Accuidity Capital Management, a private market asset management firm, valued at $10 million in cash and stock. The deal expands Forge's private market investment offerings and launches the first institutional private market index fund.
- FortunecoreForge Global partnered with Fortune to launch Private Market Lists and Rankings, providing institutional-quality insights for private company evaluation.
- ICE (Intercontinental Exchange)coreForge Global and ICE partnered to bring greater transparency to private markets with Forge Price, integrating pricing data with ICE's market infrastructure.
- Yahoo FinancecoreForge Global and Yahoo Finance launched the industry's first Private Market Hub, expanding access to private market investment opportunities through Yahoo Finance's platform.
Scale indicators13 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Forge competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- EquityZen: EquityZen operates a private market secondary trading platform connecting shareholders of private companies with accredited investors. It is the closest direct competitor to Forge's marketplace, offering similar secondary share transactions in pre-IPO companies.
- Hiive: Hiive is a private market secondary exchange providing structured bid/ask matching for pre-IPO shares, similar to Forge Marketplace. It serves both individual accredited investors and institutional clients in the same private securities trading category.
- Nasdaq Private Market: Nasdaq Private Market (NPM) provides a regulated technology platform for private company secondary trading, tender offers, and liquidity programs, directly competing with Forge across the institutional and employee-liquidity use cases.
- Carta: Carta is a cap table management and private market infrastructure platform that has expanded into secondary trading and tender offers, overlapping with Forge's Liquidity Programs and marketplace offerings for private company stakeholders.
- Zanbato: Zanbato operates an institutional private stock trading platform for broker-dealers and registered investment advisors, providing similar secondary market trading infrastructure to Forge Pro for sophisticated market participants.
Emerging players
- Moonfare: Moonfare is a digital private equity platform providing accredited investors access to private market funds and company shares. It overlaps with Forge's accredited investor segment, particularly in Europe and Asia, but with a more fund-structured approach.
- MicroVentures: MicroVentures is a private market investment platform providing accredited investors access to startup and pre-IPO equity through SPVs and direct secondary offerings, competing with Forge's accredited investor marketplace in selected segments.
Broad incumbents
- iCapital Network: iCapital is a large alternative investments platform providing wealth managers access to private equity, hedge funds, and structured private market products. It is a broader incumbent in the private market access category with overlapping institutional and RIA distribution.
- Intercontinental Exchange (ICE): ICE is a global exchange operator and market infrastructure provider that partnered with Forge to integrate Forge Price. ICE represents a strategic incumbent with established market data and exchange capabilities that overlap with Forge Data and Forge Pro.
- Charles Schwab: Charles Schwab is Forge's parent company following the March 2026 acquisition. It is one of the largest retail brokerages in the US with 39.1 million active accounts and is now the primary distribution channel for Forge's private market offerings.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Forge social profiles
Digital presenceForge compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
Forge financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Forge leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Forge subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries6 records
Forge funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds10 records
Investors22 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Forge M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A3 records
Investments1 record
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Forge
What does Forge do?
Forge operates a digital private securities marketplace that facilitates secondary market trading in shares of pre-IPO and private companies, enabling accredited investors and institutions to buy and sell equity in venture-backed issuers. The platform combines a self-serve trading marketplace, institutional brokerage (Forge Pro), proprietary daily pricing for approximately 200 pre-IPO companies (Forge Price), private market data feeds and APIs, benchmark indexes, and company-sponsored employee liquidity programs including tender offers and customized offerings.
Is Forge a public or private company?
Forge is a public company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently acquired.
When was Forge founded?
Forge was founded in 2015. It employs 251 to 500 people.
Where is Forge based?
Forge is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Forge make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Transaction Fees are the primary driver. The others are data Services, institutional Brokerage Services, liquidity Program Services and index Licensing.
Who are Forge's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are EquityZen, Hiive, Nasdaq Private Market, Carta and Zanbato. Emerging players are Moonfare and MicroVentures. Broad incumbents are iCapital Network, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) and Charles Schwab.
Does Forge have an API?
Yes. Forge Data API enables integration of same-day trade pricing, indications of interest, valuations, and portfolio/risk management tools into existing investment processes. Also available via file-based delivery format. Developer documentation is at forgeglobal.com/forge-data.
What industry is Forge in?
Forge's product category is Private Securities Trading. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSADAAAK, Copy Trading, Social Trading & Automated Trading Platforms, with a secondary code of MPAJACAL, Professional Certification & Training Content Publishing (Exam Prep, CE/CPD). Its NAICS code is 5132 and its SIC code is 6211.