Bloomberg are reporting that business-based social network LinkedIn is now worth more than $2 billion after recent outside investments.

The report states that hedge fund Tiger Global Management invested $20 million for an approximately 1% stake in the platform, paying $21.50 per share. SharesPost – an online privately held company marketplace – states that LinkedIn has 105 million shares left. Doing the maths leads us to a figure of $2.26 billion.

That said, the maths might not be quite right. Firstly, Tiger Global didn’t purchase its shares directly – they came from an existing investor, and they could well have put a mark-up on the shares in order to make a profit. Secondly, because this transaction happened privately, the numbers aren’t completely solid. Companies are notoriously – and understandably – cagey about releasing the actual figures of their worth and share costs to the public and most private transactions like this are going to be shrouded in at least a little secrecy.

Although we can’t be completely sure of exactly how much LinkedIn is worth, it’s certainly a testament to the growing power of social networking – especially in the business world.