25 Years in Raw Materials Trading: The TRADIUM Success Story

Through its 25 years in the raw materials market, TRADIUM has shown consistency and the ability to turn challenges into opportunities. Founder Matthias Rüth tells the story.

Frankfurt am Main, 27 May 2024 – TRADIUM has been in the raw materials business for 25 years and built a solid position in a challenging industry. To mark this milestone, we spoke to company founder and Managing Director Matthias Rüth about TRADIUM’s origins, its fundamental values, and the unexpected twists and turns that have shaped it.

What led to the founding of TRADIUM?
Matthias Rüth: In the 1990s, we observed a significant change in the raw materials market. Many public limited companies trading in industrial metals saw a shift towards management based on key figures. People were reassessing the profitability of buying and selling raw materials. At the time, I was an employee at one of these companies and closely followed the changes. I saw them as an opportunity to start my own company. Unlike the established market players, TRADIUM wanted to be open to businesses of all sizes in all market segments. Our approach was characterized by flexibility. We wanted to fulfill large orders and smaller requests, offer serial deliveries, and provide niche products. Supporting companies developing new products — for example, by providing them with raw material samples — was also important to us.

TRADIUM’s history shows you understand how to use change as an opportunity. How has the company held its own in a volatile market environment and amid geopolitical turbulence?
Matthias Rüth: Economic and political uncertainty has an undeniable impact on the global trade in strategic metals. We’re seeing export bans and controls, particularly in countries with an ample supply of raw materials, such as China and Russia. Fortunately, our diversified partner network and strategic inventory enable us to react flexibly to market changes. For example, last summer China imposed trade restrictions on certain technology metals, but we were able to ensure a continuous supply for our customers.

You have told us how you deal with external risks and harsh geopolitical realities. Now let us talk about TRADIUM’s inner strengths and values. How does the company maintain long-term partnerships in a volatile market environment?
Matthias Rüth: Since day one, TRADIUM has been built on a solid foundation of reliability and a willingness to cooperate. We rely on long-term relationships and trust in our partners. We always honor agreements, whether they’re written or verbal. We live by these values. For example, we’ve earned the status of exclusive producer representative for gallium from the renowned Chinese manufacturer Beijing Jiya. We’ve maintained our relationship with them over years even as supply, demand, and prices have fluctuated. This commitment has been seen and recognized and applies to all relationships with partners and suppliers. We are also a longstanding supplier for sectors such as healthcare and the aviation and automotive industries. Our industrial customers appreciate our reliability.

Now we come to the most exciting part: What unexpected opportunities have arisen for TRADIUM over the past 25 years?
Matthias Rüth: Several interesting opportunities have come our way. One notable example is the development of our private customer division as the second pillar of our business model. In 2009-2010, employees in the raw materials processing and technology sectors started asking if they could buy industrial metals like gallium and rare earths as physical assets. They wanted alternatives to gold and silver. These external inquiries opened up a whole new market for us. Today, we offer 16 metals as strategic physical assets.