Twitter shares opened 75% higher than its IPO level, debuting at $45.10 and valuing the company at $31 billion.

The social network which is yet to turn a profit had priced 70 million shares at $26 on Wednesday, but huge investor interest in the stock saw it open at $45.10, a 73.5% pop.

At the time of publication Twitter share price is trading at over $49, putting it above Facebook's current share price of $48.40.

Trading as TWTR on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) the micro-blogging service is now valued at $31bn. The average pop for IPO stock on the NYSE in 2013 is just 17%, showing just how much interest there is in Twitter.

Twitter's IPO is just the seventh largest floatation on the NYSE of 2013 and it is the largest internet IPO since Facebook went public in May of 2012, however the $16bn raised by Facebook dwarves Twitter's $1.82bn.

The opening bell at the NYSE was rung by three Twitter users. Vivienne Harr is a nine-year-old who created a lemonade stand project for a year to end childhood slavery. She was joined by British actor Sir Patrick Stewart.

While Twitter has yet to turn a profit, it is growing rapidly and now has over 230 million users. In the first nine months of 2013 its revenues increased by 106% to $422.2m compared to the year before. However its net loss also grew 89% to $133.9m.

Presented by Adam Justice

Read more: https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/twitter-shares-soar-45-10-ipo-takes-520401