TRADE X, a B2B cross-border automotive trading platform based in Ontario, Canada, has announced that it has opened a new office in Lagos, Nigeria, to help meet the growing demand for vehicles in Nigeria, now the largest economy in Africa.
TRADE X Nigeria will make vehicle purchasing and importation easier for Nigerian automotive dealers purchasing vehicles from suppliers in North America, Europe, and Asia by providing African dealers a wider range of vehicle accessibility that would have otherwise been difficult to obtain.
Damilola Thompson, the Emerging Market Lead for TRADE X, will oversee the new Lagos location, which will open a key automotive trade corridor between North America, Europe, and Asia to Nigeria, where vehicle demand far outweighs supply. As a primarily middle-income, mixed economy and emerging market, Nigeria has experienced rapid growth, with expectations that the country will double its population by 2050. The explosive population growth, combined with the upwardly trending national economy, puts local vehicle demand at unprecedented highs. The opening of TRADE X Nigeria is an important milestone in TRADE X’s mission to make cross-border automotive trading trusted, seamless and transparent globally.
“We feel that it’s important to have an on-the-ground presence in key markets, to build relationships and establish trust with local dealers and fleet owners such as in Nigeria,” Thompson said. “Our goal is to create a trusted, borderless marketplace where buyers and sellers have access to the largest supply of inventory to ensure they are getting the best possible deal. The TRADE X team in Lagos is poised to revolutionize the way new and pre-owned vehicles are imported and traded in Nigeria.”
To begin the process of cross-border trading, local automotive dealers can sign up online on the tradexport.com website and can start building greater inventory for their customers.
“TRADE X Nigeria will be a game-changer for Nigerian automotive buyers and consumers,” said Olufemi Folarin, VP of Trade and Business Development at TRADE X. “With the opening of our Lagos office, we are demonstrating our deep commitment to supporting and serving the Nigerian marketplace and helping to accelerate vehicle turnover and revenue. We encourage dealers and other buyers to utilize the streamlined features the TRADE X platform offers instead of having to deal with the bureaucracy of the port and customs themselves. Not only is the process of obtaining vehicles quicker but sourcing specific inventory can also be done through the platform’s proprietary Instant Request feature, all while removing the risk dealers were previously exposed to when trading cross-border through manual means.”
Poor transparency around logistics, vehicle condition, valuation, and pricing has served as a barrier to entry in international automotive trading. In recent years, Nigerian dealers who have managed to buy vehicles from global sources have had to do so in a largely fragmented way, relying on personal contacts and managing the purchase and importation logistics themselves. Transactions were characterized by a lack of trust, visibility, and buyer/seller protection, which, in turn, limited trade.
“We are committed to making cross-border automotive trading inclusive, trusted, and seamless,” said TRADE X Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Luciano Butera. “With the addition of the Lagos office, we are helping to forge long-term partnerships that will be a benefit not only to buyers and sellers but to the broader Nigerian populace.”
TRADE X provides a seamless end-to-end process for the sourcing and distribution of cross-border vehicle inventory. The company’s AI-driven ‘Brain’ software provides dealers, fleet owners, and mobility solutions providers first-ever support in all aspects of vehicle trading. This includes trade financing, compliance, customs requirements, international payments processing, vehicle inspections, digital trade documentation, and homologation. TRADE X provides peace of mind and security for all users, whether they are trading within their own continent or overseas. TRADE X simplifies the experience and ensures each transaction is transparent, compliant, insured, and monitored from start to finish.
About TRADE X
With headquarters in Ontario, Canada, TRADE X is the first global vehicle marketplace to aggregate cross-border supply and demand for car dealers, fleet owners, rental companies, mobility solution providers, importers, and exporters, opening new trading corridors to buy and sell vehicles. The TRADE X ‘Brain’ platform is a machine-learning, AI-driven technology that connects buyers and sellers through a transparent marketplace that aids sellers in finding the world’s highest bidders and gives buyers access to the best vehicle source markets and price arbitrage opportunities. Users can quickly and seamlessly transact online in a secure environment with all the complexities of international trade – compliance, anti-money laundering regulations, vehicle inspection, currency exchange, digital trade documentation, payments, and financing – all managed by TRADE X. The company serves authorized buyers and sellers everywhere with a user-friendly app available 24/7 via mobile, tablet, or desktop. TRADE X’s largest investors include Aimia Inc., a publicly traded holding company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: AIM).
