Afreximbank’s digital trade platform unlocks $5.3 million cross-border fuel deal

Afreximbank’s Africa Trade Gateway (ATG), its flagship digital trade ecosystem, has facilitated a $5.3 million cross-border gasoil transaction, underscoring the platform’s growing role in connecting African businesses with trade finance and international commercial opportunities.

The transaction saw Zimbabwean fuel importer Witeva Trading source a gasoil shipment from a leading commodity trader and supplier in Switzerland, with Innbucks Microbank Ltd. serving as the local issuing financial institution while Afreximbank provided confirmation support under an agreed trade finance structure. According to the bank, the deal demonstrates how African businesses can leverage a single connected digital ecosystem to identify commercial opportunities, access financing and execute cross-border transactions more efficiently. The platform brought together the buyer, supplier and participating financial institutions, enabling the successful completion of the trade.

The transaction also marked a major milestone for the ATG ecosystem, representing Innbucks Microbank’s first completed transaction on the platform and Gateway’s first recorded energy-sector transaction in Southern Africa. Afreximbank said the deal illustrates how businesses can use one digital ecosystem to identify opportunities, connect with verified counterparties, secure trade finance and complete international transactions seamlessly.

Peter Olowononi, director of regional operations for Southern Africa at Afreximbank, said the transaction demonstrates the value of bringing African businesses and financial institutions together through one connected trade ecosystem. “By creating a digital ecosystem to expand access to trade finance, Afreximbank is enabling more businesses to participate easily in regional and international trade,” he said.

Emeka Onyia, director of digital business at Afreximbank, described the Africa Trade Gateway as more than a digital platform, saying it serves as an ecosystem that enables trade by helping businesses discover commercial opportunities, connect with trusted buyers, suppliers and financial institutions, and facilitate transactions from opportunity to completion. He added that every successful deal strengthens the network, attracts new participants and creates more opportunities for African trade, noting that as more businesses, banks and trade partners join the ecosystem, the marketplace expands, trust across the network deepens and opportunities for future trade continue to grow.

Hope Moses-Ashike

Hope Moses-Ashike is an Associate Editor, Banking and Finance, with more than a decade of experience reporting on Nigeria’s financial system and broader economy. She closely tracks market movements, monetary policy decisions, company disclosures, regulatory actions, economic indicators, and global developments, and interprets what they mean for businesses, investors, policymakers, and households. Her reporting helps readers understand complex issues such as inflation trends, foreign exchange market dynamics, interest rate decisions, bank performance, and investment risks. She also covers major international events and periodically travels to Washington, D.C., to report on the World Bank/IMF Spring and Annual Meetings. Her dedication to financial journalism has earned her multiple recognitions and invitations to high-level professional development programmes. She is an alumna of the International Visitors Leadership Programme (IVLP) in the United States and holds an Advanced Financial Journalism Certificate from the Press Association Training in London, UK. Her other notable achievements include completing the Lagos Business School CMC Programme, the Bloomberg Media Africa Initiative Programme, and a Master Class in Journalism at Rhodes University in South Africa.