Twitter says it has filed confidential IPO registration

Twitter Inc. has secretly submitted a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ahead of a planned initial public offering, the company announced Thursday in a tweet.

The IPO has been one of the most highly anticipated events in the Internet business sector since Facebook went public in May last year.

A Twitter spokesman, who confirmed the authenticity of the tweet, declined further comment.         

Companies with less than $1 billion in annual revenue are able to submit IPO filings confidentially with U.S. regulators under the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, or JOBS Act.

News reports said Goldman Sachs will be lead underwriter on the Twitter IPO.

Twitter, which has been valued by private investors at more than $10 billion, is on track to post $583 million in revenue in 2013, according to advertising consultancy eMarketer.

Al Jazeera