The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has launched the African Trade and Distribution Company (ATDC) with $1 billion in funding to boost intra-African trade in raw materials, minerals, and value-added products.
The new entity was established through Afreximbank’s Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA), in collaboration with Arise Integrated Industrial Platforms (Arise IIP), Equitane DMCC, and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat.
The launch was announced at the Intra-Africa Trade Fair 2025 in Algiers, Algeria, by Afreximbank President, Prof. Benedict Oramah, alongside Algeria’s Acting Prime Minister, Sifi Ghrieb, and other African and Caribbean leaders.
Oramah said the company would help Africa “take back control” of how its commodities and minerals are processed and traded by strengthening value chains across the continent.
As part of the launch, Afreximbank also unveiled ATDC’s flagship subsidiary, ATDC Minerals (ATMIN), which will focus on mineral and hydrocarbon trade. ATDC has already entered into partnerships with Arise IIP to supply feedstock to special economic zones, and with BSMART Technology Ltd. to establish digitally integrated logistics hubs at key African ports. It has also signed trade agreements with Export Trading Group (ETG), KK Kingdom Nigeria Ltd., and Sunbeth Global Concepts Ltd.
In addition, ATDC reached joint venture agreements with CBZ Holdings and the Nigeria Commodity Exchange to establish national ATDCs in Zimbabwe and Nigeria. ATMIN further announced deals worth about $3 billion, including oil lifting arrangements with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) and Roxzen Nigeria Ltd.