AfCFTA Aligned · Kigali, Rwanda

The Operating
System for
African Trade

TradeBridge Africa connects verified buyers and suppliers across African borders — with protected payments, coordinated logistics, and access to financing. Starting on the Rwanda–Tanzania corridor.

Register Interest How It Works
$500M
Corridor Value
80%
Informal Trade
54
AfCFTA Nations
Gladness Mello, Founder & CEO
Gladness Mello
Founder & CEO
"Built by a trader, for traders — because survival mode is not a growth strategy."
Verified Trade Partners Escrow Payment Protection AfCFTA Compliant Documents Trade Credit Scoring Rwanda · Tanzania · East Africa 3% Flat Trade Financing Verified Trade Partners Escrow Payment Protection AfCFTA Compliant Documents Trade Credit Scoring Rwanda · Tanzania · East Africa 3% Flat Trade Financing
The Problem
15%
Payment Fees
Cross-border payments routed through offshore banks in USD — charging 8–15% per transaction
126h
Border Delays
Average dwell time at East African border posts due to manual paperwork
90%
Loan Rejections
Of SME loan applications rejected by formal banks — no credit history, no collateral
$120B
Finance Gap
Annual African trade finance gap leaving businesses on survival mode permanently
Why It Matters

African businesses spend 80% of their time surviving operations.

Not because of lack of ambition or skill — but because the infrastructure to trade safely, cheaply, and digitally across borders does not exist for most businesses. TradeBridge is that infrastructure.

"I built TradeBridge because I am the trader who needs it. Every month — the payments, the customs, the suppliers I cannot verify, the financing I cannot access. This platform ends that."

Gladness Mello — Founder & CEO

The Solution

Six layers.
One platform. Everything clear.

Every unit solves a specific layer of the problem — and generates its own revenue stream.

01
🏪
B2B Trade Marketplace
Verified buyers and suppliers. Every trader is identity-checked, reference-verified, and scored before listing.
Subscription · $15–$50/month
02
🔒
Escrow Payments
Pay in RWF. Receive in TZS. Funds held until buyer confirms quality. 2.5% fee vs 8–15% today.
Per transaction · 2.5% fee
03
🚛
Logistics Coordination
Long-haul Central Corridor. Auto-generated AfCFTA customs documents. Verified transporters. No last mile complexity.
Commission · 40% of booking fee
04
📊
Trade Intelligence
Every transaction becomes verified corridor data — sold to governments, banks, and DFIs as monthly subscriptions.
Subscriptions · $2K–$10K/month
05
💳
Trade Financing
Transaction history becomes a credit score. Trade loans at 3% flat per 30 days versus 25% per month informally.
Origination fee · 3% flat
06
📚
Financial Education
Embedded profit trackers, cash flow alerts, and weekly voice notes in Kinyarwanda and Swahili.
Cohort licence · NGOs & Government
How It Works

From order to payment.
Protected every step.

1
Find & Verify
Browse verified suppliers with trust scores and transaction history
2
Fund Escrow
Pay in local currency via mobile money. Funds held safely.
3
Ship & Track
Verified transporter. AfCFTA documents auto-generated.
4
Inspect Goods
72 hours to inspect against agreed specification.
5
Payment Released
Escrow releases to supplier in their local currency. Minutes.
Gladness Mello
7+ years facilitating cross-border trade at embassy, UN, and private sector level across East Africa
The Founder

Built by a trader
who lived the problem.

Gladness Mello is a Trade Facilitation Specialist with over 7 years of experience facilitating cross-border trade at embassy, UN, and private sector level. She facilitated over $1 million in trade deals between Tanzania and Egypt at the Egyptian Embassy, worked inside AfCFTA policy development at UNECA for 14 Eastern African countries, and currently runs her own trading business in Kigali — giving her direct experience of every problem TradeBridge is built to solve.

She is not building something she researched. She is building something she needs — and would pay for today.

UNECA Alumni $1M+ Trade Facilitated Economic Diplomacy AfCFTA Specialist Kigali, Rwanda
The Market

One corridor.
A continent waiting.

Starting where the problem is most visible. Expanding where the infrastructure is most needed.

01
Phase 1 · Year 1–2
Rwanda & Tanzania
Launch corridor. 80% informal. Zero digital infrastructure. TradeBridge enters first with verified B2B trade and escrow protection.
$500M
Annual corridor value
02
Phase 2 · Year 2–3
East Africa (EAC)
Add Uganda and Kenya. Same verified model, same platform, new corridors. Payment infrastructure already active via NALA.
$18B
Intra-EAC trade per year
03
Phase 3 · Year 3–5
COMESA & AfCFTA
21 countries. 560 million people. TradeBridge becomes the SME infrastructure layer for African continental trade.
$3.4T
AfCFTA trade potential
Get Involved

Join TradeBridge Africa.
Be among the first.

Register Your Interest

Whether you are a trader, investor, institution, or logistics partner — we want to hear from you.

Prefer to reach us directly?
💬
WhatsApp
+250 795 875 022
✉️
Email
ceo@tradebridge.africa
💼
LinkedIn
Gladness Mello — Founder & CEO
Building Trusted Trade Across Africa
Aligned with AfCFTA · Registered in Kigali, Rwanda · Serving East Africa and beyond