A Hong Kong office of Citibank, which won approval to issue its own credit card in China.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Citibank won approval to issue its own credit card in China, making it the first non-Asian bank to enter that market.

The approval from Chinese banking authorities was announced by the bank’s parent, Citigroup (C, Fortune 500), Monday. The card is expected to be issued sometime later this year.

“This approval represents a significant milestone in the continued expansion of Citi’s business in China, a priority market for Citi,” said Stephen Bird, CEO of Citi’s Asia Pacific unit.

Citi has had a co-branded credit card in China since 2004 through a joint venture with Shanghai Pudong Development Bank (SPDB). But those card holders are considered to be SPDB’s customers, not Citi’s. Citi has 16 million other credit card customers elsewhere in Asia.

The Bank of East Asia, based in a Hong Kong, is the only other bank from outside of China that’s permitted to issue cards by itself in the country.

The United States, through the World Trade Organization, been pushing China to open its market to U.S. credit card and debit card issuers without the use of domestic joint venture partners which the Chinese regulators typically require.

For example, last month Citi won approval to establish a joint-venture securities firm in China, together with Orient Securities Company Ltd. The entity, Citi Orient Securities Co Ltd, will be based in Shanghai, and will engage in investment banking business in the Chinese domestic market, including securities underwriting, as approved by China Securities Regulatory Commission.

General Motors (GM, Fortune 500) is another example of a U.S. firm that is forced to operate only with joint venture partners. It has the leading share of the rapidly-growing Chinese market for autos, which is the now the largest in the world. But virtually all those sales are through various joint ventures that GM has with Chinese automakers. 

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — U.S. stocks hovered below the breakeven line throughout the trading day Monday, as investors anxiously awaited a Greek government decision on budget cuts that are key to securing a second bailout and avoiding default.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) closed the day down 17 points, or 0.1%. The SP 500 (SPX) shed 0.6 points, or 0.04%. The Nasdaq (COMP) dropped 4 points, or 0.1%.

After failing to strike a deal over the weekend, political leaders in Greece were expected to resume talks Monday. Those discussions were pushed back until Tuesday amid apparent disagreements over additional job and salary cuts, as well as pension reforms and tougher tax enforcement.

Greece’s leaders are frantically trying to reach a deal on austerity measures and financial reforms necessary for a €130 billion bailout package from the European Union, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank.

Without the bailout money, the risk is that Greece will miss a €14.5 billion bond redemption in March. That could lead to a disorderly default, a development that would likely have severe consequences for the global financial system.

Greece on the brink

“Greece is the single largest determinant with what’s going on with regard to sentiment,” said Dan Greenhaus, equity market strategist at BTIG. “But there’s a level of exhaustion. There’s a sense that we want to get it over with.”

For most of 2012, investors have largely ignored problems in Europe, pushing up all three indexes.

The Dow ended last week at its highest level since May 2008, while the Nasdaq — up more than 11% for the year — finished at its highest level since December 2000. U.S. stocks rallied Friday, following a much larger-than-expected increase in hiring and a surprise drop in the unemployment rate.

Companies: Shares of Alpha Natural Resources (ANR) moved up more than 3% Monday. The company announced late Friday that it will reduce coal production by four million tons due to weakening demand.

Over the weekend, Micron Technologies (MU, Fortune 500) appointed Mark Durcan to lead the company after CEO and chairman Steve Appleton died Friday in a small-plane crash in Boise, Idaho. Durcan, who will also be the director of Micron’s board, previously served as chief operating officer and chief technical officer. Shares of the company fell nearly 3%.

What’s next for Europe?

Meanwhile, investors will continue to keep an eye on quarterly corporate results.

Hasbro’s (HAS) fourth-quarter earnings beat forecasts by a penny a share. Although sales fell short, shares of the toy and boardgame maker climbed more than 2%.

Humana’s (HUM, Fortune 500) fourth-quarter profit rose from a year earlier, and the health insurer provided an upbeat guidance, but shares dropped nearly 5%.

Coinstar (CSTR), the parent of video rental company Redbox, announced that it formed a joint venture with Verizon (VZ, Fortune 500) to compete against rival Netflix (NFLX). Both Coinstar and Netflix’s shares edged up roughly 2%. Verizon’s shares moved up 0.9%.

Coinstar beat estimates for its fourth-quarter earnings when it reported after Monday’s closing bell.

Yum! Brands (YUM, Fortune 500), owner of KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, also beat earnings estimates when it reported fourth quarter earnings after the bell Monday.

World markets: European stocks closed lower. Britain’s FTSE 100 (UKX) slid 0.3%, the DAX (DAX) in Germany shed 0.1% and France’s CAC 40 (CAC40) dropped 0.5%.

Asian markets ended mixed. The Shanghai Composite (SHCOMP) rose slightly and Japan’s Nikkei (N225) added 1.1%, while the Hang Seng (HSI) in Hong Kong dipped 0.2%.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar rose against the euro, the British pound and the Japanese yen.

Oil for March delivery slipped 65 cents to $97.19 a barrel.

Gold futures for April delivery fell $15.10 to $1,722.80 an ounce.

Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury rose, pushing the yield down to 1.90% from 1.95% late Friday.

CNNMoney’s Ben Rooney contributed to this article.  

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A Hong Kong office of Citibank, which won approval to issue its own credit card in China.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Citibank won approval to issue its own credit card in China, making it the first non-Asian bank to enter that market.

The approval from Chinese banking authorities was announced by the bank’s parent, Citigroup (C, Fortune 500), Monday. The card is expected to be issued sometime later this year.

“This approval represents a significant milestone in the continued expansion of Citi’s business in China, a priority market for Citi,” said Stephen Bird, CEO of Citi’s Asia Pacific unit.

Citi has had a co-branded credit card in China since 2004 through a joint venture with Shanghai Pudong Development Bank (SPDB). But those card holders are considered to be SPDB’s customers, not Citi’s. Citi has 16 million other credit card customers elsewhere in Asia.

The Bank of East Asia, based in a Hong Kong, is the only other bank from outside of China that’s permitted to issue cards by itself in the country.

The United States, through the World Trade Organization, been pushing China to open its market to U.S. credit card and debit card issuers without the use of domestic joint venture partners which the Chinese regulators typically require.

For example, last month Citi won approval to establish a joint-venture securities firm in China, together with Orient Securities Company Ltd. The entity, Citi Orient Securities Co Ltd, will be based in Shanghai, and will engage in investment banking business in the Chinese domestic market, including securities underwriting, as approved by China Securities Regulatory Commission.

General Motors (GM, Fortune 500) is another example of a U.S. firm that is forced to operate only with joint venture partners. It has the leading share of the rapidly-growing Chinese market for autos, which is the now the largest in the world. But virtually all those sales are through various joint ventures that GM has with Chinese automakers. 

Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos meets with officials from the nation’s main political parties to hammer out reforms needed to secure more bailout money.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Officials in Greece were under pressure Monday to agree on the terms of a new bailout package, as the threat of a default hangs over the country.

Prime Minister Lucas Papademos said the leaders of Greece’s three main political parties have agreed on the “main elements” needed to secure emergency loans from the European Union and International Monetary Fund, according to a statement.

Greece needs to finalize the terms of a proposed €130 billion bailout soon, in order to avoid an all-but-certain default on a €14.5 billion bond redemption in March. The concern is that a so-called disorderly default could lead to a financial crisis in Europe that would shock the global economy.

The talks in Athens have reportedly been held up by disagreements over additional job and salary cuts, as well as pension reforms and tougher tax enforcement. But officials have made progress on a plan to reduce public spending by 1.5% of gross domestic output this year, according to Papademos.

What’s next for Europe?

Greece, which owes some €330 billion, has come close to default before.

The nation has struggled to follow through on austerity measures and economic reforms that were a condition of its 2010 bailout package. But the nation’s economy has been in recession for years and many analysts warn that additional austerity could make the situation worse.

EU leaders have been sounding increasingly frustrated with the lack of progress in Greece.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Monday that failure was not an option for Greece, adding that “considerable measures” have been put in motion to help the nation “out of the situation it finds itself in today.”

“But the Greek leaders have made commitments and they must respect these scrupulously,” he said. “There is no choice, there is no choice.”

EU finance ministers are widely expected to hold an “extraordinary” meeting sometime this week, although no official date has been set.

Meanwhile, Greece appears close to a deal with its creditors in the private sector to write down a portion of the nation’s debt.

SP president: Why I’m still hopeful

The agreement, which would result in significant losses for bondholders, is intended to help reduce Greece’s debts to 120% of GDP by 2020, from about 160% currently.

The worsening Greek economy has raised calls for the nation’s creditors in the “official sector” to provide some relief.

The European Central Bank, which holds an estimated €30 billion to €45 billion of Greek debt, is under pressure to forego profits on those bonds, as are individual euro area central banks.

In the bond market, yields on short-term debt issued by Greece and Portugal, another troubled economy, rose near record highs. But yields on similar Italian and Spanish bonds were little changed. 

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The Nasdaq is trading at its highest level since December 2000 … but tech stocks are still way below their March 2000 dot-com bubble peaks.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — The Nasdaq is at its highest level since the end of 2000. Highly speculative companies like Netflix (NFLX) and Zynga (ZNGA) are soaring, and investors are salivating about possibly paying 100 times earnings for Facebook when it goes public.

If you want to declare that tech stocks are once again a bubble … you’d be dead wrong.

Sure, some techs like Netflix, Amazon.com (AMZN, Fortune 500) and Salesforce.com (CRM) (to name a few) trade at extremely high price-to-earnings ratios for this year and next. But they are the exception, not the rule.

As tempting as it may be to declare that techs are frothy — as they were just before the dot-com bubble burst in March 2000 — it’s simply not true.

Take a look at the Nasdaq 100 (NDX), the largest non-financial stocks in the Nasdaq Composite. While it’s not a pure tech index since it also includes companies like Starbucks (SBUX, Fortune 500), Amgen (AMGN, Fortune 500) and Wynn Resorts (WYNN), it is very tech heavy.

The largest companies in the index by market value are Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500), Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500), Google (GOOG, Fortune 500) and Oracle (ORCL, Fortune 500). Intel, Cisco Systems and Qualcomm are in the top ten.

Of those seven companies, the most expensive is Qualcomm (QCOM, Fortune 500). And it’s trading at only 16 times 2012 earnings forecasts, in line with its growth rate.

Apple, Microsoft, Intel (INTC, Fortune 500) and Cisco (CSCO, Fortune 500) all trade at 11 times calendar 2012 earnings forecasts. Oracle has a P/E of 12 while Google trades for just 14 times profit forecasts.

Stocks party like it’s 1997. Can it last?

The Nasdaq 100, overall, is trading at just 18 times earnings estimates for 2012. That’s more expensive than the broader market, but it’s not that crazy considering that earnings, on average, for the Nasdaq 100 companies are expected to increase 14 percent this year.

Of course, none of the big techs are growing as rapidly as they were a few years ago, save for Apple. So it’s understandable why some investors may be more interested in companies with greater growth potential. Like Facebook for example.

But the big techs look extremely attractive and relatively safe. That’s a rare combination.

“Valuations for larger tech companies are reasonable. And many of the big companies are generating a lot of cash flow,” said Sunil Reddy, portfolio manager with Apex Capital Management in Dayton, Ohio.

“Growth rates have come down compared to 10 years ago, but the balance sheets are much stronger,” Reddy added.

With $97.6 billion, Apple has more cash than …

Investors do need to be cautious. The Nasdaq is up more than 11% already so far this year. Tech stocks have risen so far, so fast in 2012 that it would be tough to imagine them heading higher without some sort of correction.

“We might be getting a little overbought. There is a lot of enthusiasm about tech stocks in a short period of time, so there could be a pullback,” said Andrew Fitzpatrick, director of investments with Hinsdale Associates in Hinsdale, Ill.

However, Fitzpatrick thinks that any pullback could be brief. Keep in mind that even though the Nasdaq is at its highest level since December 2000, the index is still 44% below the all-time highs it hit earlier that year.

“The outlook for tech stocks is still positive. The Nasdaq has been undervalued for a while,” Fitzpatrick said.

So no matter how pricey Facebook is when it starts trading in a few months, don’t mistake a possible bubble in social media and other parts of the tech food chain as being a bubble covering all of tech.

“Many of the big tech companies are in good product cycles, have recurring revenue streams and they are cheap,” said Ted Parrish, co-manager of the Henssler Equity Fund (HEQFX) in Kennesaw, Ga. His fund owns big stakes in Apple, IBM (IBM, Fortune 500) and Qualcomm.

“Facebook is an outlier. You can’t look at Facebook and say other techs are too expensive,” Parrish added.

Best of StockTwits: Investors were all worked up about a report on the Good E-Reader blog that said Amazon is planning to launch a retail store in Seattle to sell its Kindle tablets. If true, that would be very Apple-esque. But some don’t think it’s a good idea.

Pridon: $AAPL $AMZN I don’t believe the rumor re Amazon retail. It would expose AMZN to sales tax in each state. Margins on Kindles too low.

It does seem curious. Then again, many doubted Apple would be able to be successful with its own brick-and-mortar stores. But it’s important to note that this report hasn’t been substantiated yet. And there have been rumors like this before. Nonetheless …

shoedeep: @Pridon good point. Retail store just for advertising is just too expensive! Need a high margin product, $AMZN doesnt have it! $AAPL

ldrogen: $AMZN will gut itself trying to bloody up $AAPL, u have to know when not to get involved in a fight

Indeed. Not sure Amazon has enough in its hardware arsenal that it could sell in its own stores. Unless the target isn’t Apple as much as …

oktobernv: $AMZN opening retail stores to focus on E-readers and books?? That’s gonna be REAL bad news for $BKS

Hard to imagine there being more bad news for Nook owner Barnes and Noble (BKS, Fortune 500). And the struggles of BKS and the now-defunct Borders make me think Amazon may want to think twice before deciding to open up its own chain of stores.

By the way … how about them Super Bowl champion New York Giants!

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Paul R. La Monica. Other than Time Warner, the parent of CNNMoney, and Abbott Laboratories, La Monica does not own positions in any individual stocks. 

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — U.S. stocks slipped, as investors anxiously await a Greek government decision on budget cuts that are key to securing a second bailout and avoiding default.

Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) lost 43 points, or 0.3%. The SP 500 (SPX) shed 4 points, or 0.3%. The Nasdaq (COMP) dropped 12 points, or 0.3%.

After failing to strike a deal over the weekend, political leaders in Greece are set to resume talks Monday.

They’re trying to reach a deal on austerity measures and financial reforms necessary for a €145 billion bailout package from the European Union, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank.

Without the bailout money, the risk is that Greece will miss a €14.5 billion bond redemption in March. That could lead to a disorderly default, a development that would likely have severe consequences for the global financial system.

Greece on the brink

“Greece is the single largest determinant with what’s going on with regard to sentiment,” said Dan Greenhaus, equity market strategist at BTIG. “But there’s a level of exhaustion. There’s a sense that we want to get it over with.”

For most of 2012, investors have largely ignored problems in Europe, pushing up all three indexes.

The Dow ended last week at its highest level since May 2008, while the Nasdaq — up more than 11% for the year — finished at its highest level since December 2000. U.S. stocks rallied Friday, following a much larger-than-expected increase in hiring and a surprise drop in the unemployment rate.

Companies: Shares of Alpha Natural Resources (ANR) moved up more than 2%. The company announced late Friday that it will reduce coal production by four million tons due to weakening demand.

Over the weekend, Micron Technologies (MU, Fortune 500) appointed Mark Durcan to lead the company after CEO and chairman Steve Appleton died Friday in a small-plane crash in Boise, Idaho. Durcan, who will also be the director of Micron’s board, previously served as chief operating officer and chief technical officer. Shares of the company fell nearly 2%.

What’s next for Europe?

Meanwhile, investors will continue to keep an eye on quarterly corporate results.

Hasbro’s (HAS) fourth-quarter earnings beat forecasts by a penny a share. Although sales fell short, shares of the toy and boardgame maker climbed more than 2%.

Humana’s (HUM, Fortune 500) fourth-quarter profit rose from a year earlier, and the health insurer provided an upbeat guidance, but shares dropped nearly 5%.

Coinstar (CSTR), the parent of video rental company Redbox, announced that it formed a joint venture with Verizon (VZ, Fortune 500) to compete against rival Netflix (NFLX). Coinstar will report fourth-quarter earnings after Monday’s closing bell. Coinstar’s shares edged up more than 1%, while Verizon and Netflix’s shares straddled the break-even line.

Yum! Brands (YUM, Fortune 500), owner of KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, is also on tap to post results later in the day.

World markets: European stocks closed lower. Britain’s FTSE 100 (UKX) slid 0.3%, the DAX (DAX) in Germany shed 0.1% and France’s CAC 40 (CAC40) dropped 0.5%.

Asian markets ended mixed. The Shanghai Composite (SHCOMP) rose slightly and Japan’s Nikkei (N225) added 1.1%, while the Hang Seng (HSI) in Hong Kong dipped 0.2%.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar rose against the euro, the British pound and the Japanese yen.

Oil for March delivery slipped 81 cents to $97.07 a barrel.

Gold futures for April delivery fell $15.90 to $1,722.00 an ounce.

Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury rose, pushing the yield down to 1.94% from 1.95% late Friday.  

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Stocks surged last week to their highest levels in years, but there are few key economic reports slated for the week ahead to sustain the rally.

The big news last week was Friday’s report from the U.S. Labor Department, which showed a much larger-than-expected increase in hiring and a surprise drop in the unemployment rate.

Investors cheered the jobs data, which came on the heels of upbeat reports on auto sales, construction spending and manufacturing activity.

The Dow rose 1.6% last week, ending at its highest point since May 2008. The Nasdaq jumped 3.2% over the last five trading days, climbing to its highest level since December 2000, and the SP 500 added 2.2%.

Next week, investors will take in reports on consumer sentiment and the nation’s trade balance, both coming on Friday.

On the corporate front, Dow stocks Coca-Cola (KO, Fortune 500), Cisco (CSCO, Fortune 500) and Disney (DIS, Fortune 500) are scheduled to report quarterly results.

Given the lack of major economic reports next week and the market’s recent strength, some analysts say stocks are vulnerable to a sell off.

“The market is definitely due for a pullback,” said Keith Springer, president of Springer Financial Advisors in Sacramento, Calif. “But so many people have been waiting for one that it might not come until the market is much higher.”

Meanwhile, the focus next week could shift back to the debt crisis in Europe, where talks in Greece over a debt write down and a second bailout appear to be coming to a head.

Concerns about a hard landing in China may also be top of mind next week, with reports due on consumer prices and foreign trade due out.

“Next week, I think the trade will continue to monitor the Greek debt restructuring, while watching the Chinese inflation and trade data,” said Nick Kalivas, market strategist at Hadrian Partners.

Greece appears close to a deal with its private sector creditors to write down a portion of the nation’s debts. The deal has been held up for weeks by disagreements over how much of a loss investors would voluntarily accept on Greek bonds.

Kiss QE3 hopes goodbye. And good riddance!

At the same time, there are concerns that political wrangling in Athens over more budget cuts could delay a second bailout, which is now expected to total €145 billion, up from the previously estimated €130 billion.

There is also widespread speculation that Greece will not meet its mandated fiscal targets unless its “official” creditors, such as the European Central bank, take part in the restructuring.

The ECB is expected to hold interest rates steady at its regularly scheduled policy meeting and press conference on Thursday. 

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — U.S. stocks rallied Friday, as investors cheered a much stronger-than-expected jobs report.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) gained 157 points, or 1.2%, the SP 500 (SPX) added 19 points, or 1.5%, and the Nasdaq composite (COMP) increased 46 points, or 1.6%.

The rally pushed pushed the Dow, up more than 5% in 2012, to its highest level since May 2008. The Nasdaq, up more than 11% for the year, climbed to its highest level since December 2000. The SP 500 has gained almost 7% this year, and finished at a six-month high.

The rally was sparked by the Labor Department’s monthly jobs report, which showed that the U.S. economy added 243,000 jobs in January, far exceeding expectations. The unemployment rate dropped to 8.3%, the lowest since February 2009.

Economists surveyed by CNNMoney had expected the government to report an increase of just 130,000 jobs in January. The unemployment rate was expected to rise to 8.6%.

Check the unemployment rate in your state

Economists had expected a slowdown in post-holiday hiring, considering that about 40,000 temporary couriers were hired for the holidays alone..

“The jobs data blew away market expectations,” noted Marc Chandler, global head of currency strategy at Brown Brothers Harriman, calling it a “monster” jobs report. “This coupled with other recent reports for January, show the year has begun off on a firm note,” he added.

Meanwhile, investors were also on the lookout for an official agreement on a debt-reduction plan and a second bailout for Greece. The deal is expected to be near, but negotiations are likely to continue thorough the weekend.

U.S. stocks ended mixed Thursday as investors digested a cautious economic outlook from the chairman of the Federal Reserve.

Economy: Factory orders for December rose 1.1%, slightly below expectations. The January installment of the ISM Services Index hit 56.8, surpassing economists’ expectations for 53.1, and up sharply from the prior month.

Companies: Financial stocks were big gainers in Friday’s rally, with Bank of America’s (BAC, Fortune 500) 5% spike leading the Dow’s gains. Morgan Stanley (MS, Fortune 500), Citigroup (C, Fortune 500) and Goldman Sachs (GS, Fortune 500) were all up between 3% and 5%.

Shares of Genworth Financial (GNW, Fortune 500) soared 14% after the mortgage insurer swung to a fourth-quarter profit.

Tyson Foods (TSN, Fortune 500) shares rose after the company reported better-than-expected earnings and issued slightly upbeat guidance.

Estee Lauder (EL, Fortune 500) reported a 15% profit increase for its fiscal second quarter to $597 million, but its stock tumbled as the company’s guidance for the current quarter came in short of analyst expectations.

Shares of Gilead Sciences (GILD, Fortune 500) spiked after the company posted fourth-quarter earnings that rose almost 6% from a year ago.

Edwards Lifesciences’ (EW) stock dropped as earnings fell and the company gave a lackluster forecast for the current quarter.

Zynga (ZNGA) shares continue to rise, after Facebook’s IPO revealed the gamemaker accounted for 12% of its revenue in 2011.

Facebook IPO shrinks private trading market

Research in Motion (RIMM) shares dipped after the BlackBerry-maker said it will give its tablet, the BlackBerry PlayBook, out to Android developers in exchange for their apps.

Trading in shares of Micron Technology (MU, Fortune 500) was halted after the company announced that its CEO and chairman Steve Appleton died Friday morning in a small-plane crash in Boise.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar slipped against the euro and the British pound, but rose versus the Japanese yen.

Oil for March delivery rose $1.48 to settle at $97.84 a barrel.

Gold futures for April delivery fell $19 to settle at $1,736.80 an ounce.

Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury fell, pushing the yield up to 1.95% from 1.82% late Thursday.

World markets: European stocks ended sharply higher. Britain’s FTSE 100 (UKX) rose 1.8%, while the DAX (DAX) in Germany jumped 1.7% and France’s CAC 40 (CAC40) rose 1.5%.

Asian markets ended mixed. The Shanghai Composite (SHCOMP) rose 0.8%, while the Hang Seng (HSI) in Hong Kong was flat and Japan’s Nikkei (N225) slipped 0.5%. 

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Shares of General Motors and Ford surged on Friday following strong data on the U.S. job market.

On Friday morning, the U.S. government announced that the economy added 243,000 jobs in January, far outpacing analyst estimates. The news sparked a broad rally in U.S. stocks, with the Dow pushing to its highest level in nearly four years.

U.S. automakers were big beneficiaries, as GM (GM, Fortune 500) shares were up more than 7.5% in mid-day trading and Ford (F, Fortune 500) was up 3.4%.

Alex Potter, a senior research analyst at Piper Jaffray, called the unemployment data “a huge metric to follow for domestic car consumption.”

“There’s a lot of optimism permeating the entire industry and just looking for an opportunity to break out, so when you get this incremental data that goes after the core of one of the key concerns in the market, the stock’s going to start working,” he said. 

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The post-Facebook secondary trading market will be much smaller but still draw interest.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Facebook has played a big role in the private trading markets that allow eligible investors the chance to snap up shares of hot Internet companies years before they go public.

But now that Facebook is following Groupon (GRPN), LinkedIn (LNKD), Zynga (ZNGA) and Pandora (P) to become a publicly traded company, can that market survive?

“There’s no question that once Facebook goes public, there will be a hole in this market,” said Hans Swilden, a managing director at Industry Ventures, a $1.1 billion fund that buys secondary stakes in private companies.

For SecondMarket, one of the largest private exchanges, Facebook accounted for the majority of the $1.1 billion of stock that it’s traded since 2009, according to company spokeswoman Aishwarya Iyer.

Facebook shares pop on secondary markets

And a host of other companies have sprung up over the past several years, largely because of “the Facebook phenomenon,” noted Swilden.

SharesPost runs a platform similar to SecondMarket, and smaller investment banks including Wedbush Securities and Cantor Fitzgerald have created divisions that specialize in private share transactions.

What will Facebook do with $9 billion?

Felix Investments, another active private market participant that has channeled money from roughly 1,000 investors into 17 funds that own “several hundred million dollars” in Facebook, as well as pre-IPO shares of Twitter and Groupon, isn’t worried.

“I don’t think a company will ever grow to the size of Facebook again as a private company, but new companies come on our radar every day,” said Felix partner Frank Mazzola. “We’re busier than we’ve ever been.”

Still, Mazzola won’t name names of companies he’s scouting or investing in. Without Facebook, Groupon, Zynga and LinkedIn, few brand name companies are private and of enough scale to generate substantial trading activity.

SecondMarket won’t disclose names of companies trading on its platform, and perusing SharesPost’s list of possible companies offers few standouts.

Private markets have also come under closer scrutiny by regulators. Last year, the Securities and Exchange Commission started taking a closer look at how these markets operate but has not yet stepped in with tighter regulations.

Facebook acknowledged that it has cooperated with “formal and informal” requests for information from the SEC and believes it has complied with federal securities laws. “We have provided all information requested and there are no requests for documents or information that remain outstanding,” the company said in its IPO filing.

The other challenge for private markets is that some of the new hot companies, such as file sharing firm Dropbox and Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey’s mobile payment venture Square, are simply too young to have hundreds of employees with shares to sell.

At most startups, employees are barred from selling shares for the first year of employment and then receive stock options over a four-year-period.

Facebook IPO: Morgan Stanley is big winner

As companies take longer to go public, or don’t at all, private markets still offer a way for employees to cash out. Alan Patricof, a venture capital investor at Greycroft Partners in New York, said he’s never had one of his portfolio companies trade on SecondMarket’s platform yet, but expects that at least one to two companies will in the next few years.

“The secondary markets will survive. It’s never going to be the main way companies get liquidity,” said Patricof, who has invested in social media companies including Klout. “But, more companies will continue to get traded there, and it will become more of an interim step toward an IPO.”  

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