Can I sell a small amount of private shares in the US or Europe?

Yes. The large US secondary marketplaces are built for bigger, US-accredited, or company-run deals, but a small US or European holder can still sell — typically to existing shareholders, to an incoming round's investor, or to a private buyer, often arranged through a small-ticket introductions service. Confirm first that you are free to sell: check vesting, whether options need exercising, and any right of first refusal or board approval.

What is the minimum to buy or sell on Forge or EquityZen?

Forge direct secondary purchases are commonly cited at around US$100,000, with smaller amounts usually only available through pooled fund vehicles. EquityZen invests largely through funds, which allow smaller amounts than direct deals. Both operate under the US accredited-investor framework and change their terms over time, so check each platform's current terms directly.

Do I have to be an accredited investor to sell my shares?

Selling your own shares generally does not require you to be an accredited investor, but the big US platforms require the buyer to be US-accredited, which narrows who can buy and how deals are structured. A Europe-first buyer-and-seller route works differently, though you should always take your own legal and tax advice.

Is Secfi a marketplace for selling shares?

Not primarily. Secfi is a financing and advisory firm that helps employees exercise options and obtain liquidity, and it describes itself as an investor rather than a marketplace. It is a different type of service from a secondary marketplace such as Forge or EquityZen.

Your options · US & Europe

Selling a small private-share stake — US & Europe: your real options

A neutral, sourced guide for anyone holding a small position in a private company · Updated October 2026 · by the PrivateTechShares team

If you hold a small slice of a private company — say $10,000–$50,000 or €10,000–€50,000 of shares or vested options — and you want to turn some of it into cash, you'll quickly notice that most of the well-known “sell your pre-IPO shares” platforms don't seem built for you. They're not. Here's why, and what actually works.

Why the big marketplaces often can’t help a small US or European seller

The best-known secondary marketplaces — Forge Global, EquityZen, Nasdaq Private Market — are genuinely good at what they do. But what they do is shaped by three things that quietly leave out a small individual holder — in the US or Europe:

They run on the US “accredited investor” framework. Their buyers must generally be US-accredited investors, and their processes are built around US securities rules.¹
Direct deals carry high minimums. A direct secondary purchase of your specific shares is commonly cited at around US$100,000 on Forge; smaller amounts are usually only possible through pooled fund vehicles, not a one-off sale of the shares you hold.¹
Much of the volume is company-run. A large share of private-market liquidity happens through company-sponsored tender offers and structured programmes — Nasdaq Private Market's core business — which only helps you if your company chooses to run one.⁴

There's also a bigger shift worth knowing: the major US players are consolidating into large US financial institutions. Forge agreed in November 2025 to be acquired by Charles Schwab,² and EquityZen announced its acquisition by Morgan Stanley in October 2025.³ That isn't a criticism — but it points these platforms further toward the large-ticket, US-institutional market, not the individual European seller with a modest position.

How the main options compare

Neutral summary as of October 2026. Figures vary by deal and change over time — sources are listed below, and you should check each platform's current terms directly.

Platform	Built mainly for	Typical entry	Geography	Model
Forge Global	US-accredited investors & institutions	Direct deals commonly cited ~US$100k; smaller amounts only via funds	US-centric	Secondary marketplace + brokerage (NYSE: FRGE; Schwab acquisition agreed Nov 2025)
EquityZen	US-accredited investors	Pooled funds allow smaller amounts than direct deals; direct deals far higher	US-centric	Fund-based secondary marketplace (Morgan Stanley acquisition announced Oct 2025)
Nasdaq Private Market	Companies running liquidity programmes; accredited investors & institutions	Varies by programme; no fixed public minimum	Global (50+ countries)	Tender offers, auctions & company-run marketplaces
Secfi	Employees with stock options	Not a buyer marketplace — no listing minimum	US-focused	Option-exercise financing + equity advice; describes itself as an investor, not a marketplace⁵
PrivateTechShares	Individual US & European holders with small positions	From €10k	US & Europe	Education & tools — plain-English guides, calculators and a preparation toolkit; not a broker, and no transaction fee

So what can a small US or European seller actually do?

Realistically, four routes exist — the same four for everyone, just weighed differently when your position is small, whether you’re in the US or Europe:

Ask whether your company runs a buyback or tender. If it does, this is the cleanest path. Most smaller companies don't.
Offer to existing shareholders or your incoming round's investor. People who already know the company are its most natural buyers, and a new round is a common moment to sell a small slice.
Sell to a private investor directly. An individual who wants exposure to the company buys some of your shares. This is the route that genuinely exists for small sellers — and the one that's hardest to arrange on your own.
Prepare properly before you approach anyone. For a small position — US or European — the hard part is understanding what you hold, what it’s worth, the transfer rules and the tax. That’s the gap we built PrivateTechShares to fill — with plain-English guides and a preparation toolkit.

Whichever route you take, the mechanics are the same: confirm you're actually free to sell (vesting, exercise, any right of first refusal, board approval), agree a fair price, and paper it properly. None of the platforms above — us included — changes those basics.

Thinking about selling?

It's worth understanding what you hold, what it might be worth and how a private transfer works before you act. Start with the free equity starter kit, or go deeper with the equity toolkit.

Get the equity toolkit — €39

EU edition · instant PDF, no sign-up · US edition →

Prefer to read up first? The Equity Toolkit (€39) walks through clearing restrictions and running the sale, step by step.

Where PrivateTechShares fits — honestly

We built PrivateTechShares specifically for the person this page is about: an individual in the US or Europe holding a small position — from about €10,000 — who the big marketplaces aren't set up to serve. We help you understand and prepare your equity — what it’s worth, the transfer restrictions, the documents to gather and the tax to plan for — with free guides, calculators and a preparation toolkit. We’re not a broker or marketplace: we don’t find buyers, hold shares or money, or take any transaction fee.

We're not the right tool for a large institutional block, or for a company-run tender offer — the platforms above are better for those. Different jobs. This page is here so you can tell which job is yours.

Sources

Primary and reputable sources for the specific claims above. Please check each platform's current terms directly, as they change.

Forge Global — investor eligibility, minimums and fees: forgeglobal.com/faqs
Charles Schwab to acquire Forge Global (6 Nov 2025): pressroom.aboutschwab.com
EquityZen acquisition by Morgan Stanley (Oct 2025): morganstanley.com press release
Nasdaq Private Market — individual accredited investors & company programmes: nasdaqprivatemarket.com
Secfi — how its financing and business model work: secfi.com