Africa’s critical minerals producers could gain a new route to trade financing under a global partnership between Abu Dhabi-based ADI Foundation and digital asset developer SAGINT, which is bringing digital warehouse receipts onto the ADI Chain blockchain network.

The initiative targets a persistent obstacle in commodities markets: proving a mineral’s origin, quantity, ownership and custody as it moves between producers, warehouses, traders and international buyers. Without reliable records, lenders and insurers can face difficulties assessing the assets supporting a transaction.

For African mining companies and commodity traders, the technology could make verified mineral inventories easier to finance, insure and trade. The opportunity comes as demand for energy-transition minerals intersects with a substantial shortage of trade finance across the continent.

Africa’s trade finance gap creates an opening

The scale of the financing challenge is considerable. The African Development Bank estimates unmet trade finance demand in Africa at between $74 billion and $92 billion, while the Asian Development Bank puts the global trade finance gap at $2.5 trillion.

Meanwhile, the International Energy Agency valued the global market for key energy-transition minerals at about $325 billion in 2023. These figures highlight the commercial opportunity for systems that help lenders establish what commodities exist, where they are held and whether the underlying records can be independently verified.

ADI Foundation and SAGINT aim to address that challenge by creating digital records for individual lots of critical minerals on the ADI Chain. The records are intended to give authorised participants access to relevant information without exposing commercially sensitive data to every party in the supply chain.

The initiative also aligns with ADI Foundation’s work with the African Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat on digital trade infrastructure. That effort includes improving the verification of trade documents and helping businesses obtain financing against inventory and other certified assets.

Digital records strengthen mineral trade verification

SAGINT’s Digital Warehouse Receipt technology replaces fragmented paper documentation with a digital record containing details such as a mineral lot’s origin, quantity, custody and assay data.

Recording these details and related events on ADI Chain creates a shared verification system for authorised lenders, insurers, customs officers and other participants. Instead of relying solely on documents maintained separately by different counterparties, eligible parties can verify the information relevant to their roles.

The system is designed to strengthen confidence in the commodities underpinning financing and insurance transactions. However, its commercial impact will depend on adoption by producers, warehouse operators, traders and financial institutions.

Under the agreement, ADI Foundation will act as SAGINT’s exclusive channel participant worldwide, introducing producers, warehouses, traders and other organisations to the network across Africa, the Middle East, Asia and additional markets.

SAGINT International CEO Troy Fitrell said the partnership would allow verification to accompany materials across borders, helping producers reach financing while enabling lenders and insurers to assess the assets they support. ADI Foundation principal council member Ajay Bhatia said the arrangement would allow authorised lenders, insurers and customs officers to verify records independently. The foundation also plans to bring the first organisations onto the network.

A system already being tested with production material

SAGINT said it has issued Digital Warehouse Receipts for production material since January 2026, beginning with refined rare earth oxide produced by ReElement Technologies.

That initial application provides an example of the technology’s use with processed mineral material. The partnership with ADI Foundation is intended to extend the system’s reach by connecting it to the ADI Chain and introducing more participants across international commodities markets.

For Africa, the key test will be whether the infrastructure gains sufficient adoption to help mineral producers turn verified inventory into financing opportunities and make cross-border trade documentation easier to validate.