• Afreximbank launches $1B trade firm to boost intra-African commerce
• Intra-African trade rose 12.4% to $220.3B in 2024
• IATF 2025 aims for $44B in deals, hosted in Algeria

Afreximbank has launched the African Trade and Distribution Company with $1 billion in capital, an initiative designed to boost intra-African trade, support exports, and encourage local processing of raw materials. The announcement was made in Algiers on Friday during the African Diasporas Day and the 4th Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF 2025).

According to Ayman El-Zoghby, director of trade and investment financing at Afreximbank, the company was already operating before its official launch, having started by marketing certain African products. The goal is to prevent raw materials from being exported to other continents by promoting their on-site processing. The company will have its own financing resources to scale up its activities.

Intra-African Trade Recovery

Afreximbank's 2025 report on African trade, published on June 25, 2025, shows that intra-African trade reached $220.3 billion in 2024, a 12.4% increase from 2023. While raw materials still dominate trade, other sectors like machinery, vehicles, food, chemicals, and electronics are gaining ground. The report also indicates that Africa's total merchandise trade has resumed growth, rising 13.9% in 2024 to reach $1.5 trillion, after a 5.4% contraction in 2023.

However, Africa still accounts for only 3.3% of global exports, a clear signal that the continent must intensify its trade to improve its integration into global value chains. Afreximbank is already part of this effort. In 2024, the institution alone disbursed more than $17.5 billion in trade finance and plans to increase that amount to $40 billion by 2026.

The 4th IATF, held in Algiers from September 4 to 10, 2025, is co-organized by Afreximbank, the African Union Commission, and the AfCFTA Secretariat. The biennial event brings together more than 2,000 exhibitors and thousands of buyers from Africa and other continents. Organizers expect this year’s fair to generate more than $44 billion in trade and investment deals.

Since its inception in 2018, the IATF has facilitated the signing of agreements worth more than $118 billion. After being held in Egypt and South Africa, the 2025 edition marks the first time the fair has been hosted by Algeria before Nigeria hosts the next event. The IATF aims to leverage the opportunities offered by the AfCFTA single market, which includes more than 1.4 billion people and represents a GDP of over $3.5 trillion.

Chamberline Moko