Tradex S.A.

What Tradex S.A. does

Tradex S.A. is a Spain-based shipbroking firm founded in 1981 and headquartered in Zarautz, Guipúzcoa, in the Basque Country. The company provides a comprehensive suite of maritime brokerage services, including second-hand sale and purchase of vessels, newbuilding contracting, demolition, chartering, towage and salvage, and marine/offshore equipment transactions. Its core specialization is fishing vessels — particularly Tuna Purse Seiners and Freezers in the North Atlantic — supported by direct access to all Spanish shipyards and most Far Eastern shipbuilders. The company has brokered over 265 ships since 1990 and maintains direct principal relationships across five continents.

The firm operates on a pure transaction-based commission model, earning fees on each brokered sale & purchase, newbuilding, demolition, finance, or valuation deal. With only 5 employees, Tradex is a micro-boutique whose competitive position rests on personal expertise, niche specialization, and confidentiality rather than scale. Its technology stack is modest — continuous market analysis systems and standard computerization/communications infrastructure — and it does not position technology as a differentiator. GTM is sales-led: direct enterprise engagement with shipowners, charterers, and operators, supplemented by a bilingual English/Spanish corporate website and contact forms.

Tradex is privately held, independent from shipping or financial institutions, and has held ISO 9001-200 quality certification since June 2004. No funding rounds, acquisitions, partnerships, or product launches are disclosed in the available data. The website's news section shows no entries after 2004, which combined with the absence of recent corporate signals limits visibility into current growth dynamics. The headline customer segments are fishing vessel owners, container, Ro/Ro, towage, and newbuilding clients — primarily in Spain and Europe, with global reach via direct principal relationships.

Name

Tradex S.A.

Legal name

Tradex S.A.

Website

https://tradex.es

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Tradex S.A. is a Spain-based shipbroking firm founded in 1981, serving shipowners, charterers, and operators with sale & purchase, newbuilding, demolition, and chartering services. It specializes in fishing vessels, particularly Tuna Purse Seiners, and operates globally through a 5-person team.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Shipbroking Services

NAICS

Freight Transportation Arrangement (488510)

SIC

Arrangement Of Transportation Of Freight & Cargo (4731)

akta.pro primary industry

Ocean Freight Brokerage (FCL/LCL) (TLADAMAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Export & Cross-Border Fleet Resale (Compliance, Documentation) (TLABAKAJ)

Keywords

• Shipbroking services
• Vessel sale and purchase
• Newbuilding contracting
• Ship demolition brokerage
• Maritime chartering services

Headquarters

HQ city

Zarautz

HQ country

Spain

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Shipbroking Services: Commission and transaction-based fees from sale & purchase, newbuilding, demolition, finance and valuation services for ships. Earnings derived from brokered maritime transactions between principals.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Tradex S.A. is a shipbroking firm that intermediates maritime transactions for shipowners, charterers, and operators. Its core offering includes sale and purchase brokerage for second-hand vessels, newbuilding contracting (design, shipyard selection, construction surveillance, financing), ship demolition brokerage, chartering services across multiple vessel types (container, fishing, Ro/Ro, passenger), towage and salvage brokerage, and vessel finance and valuation services. The firm specializes in Tuna Purse Seiner fishing vessels and operates with direct access to Spanish shipyards and most Far Eastern shipbuilders.

Product overview

Tradex S.A. is a shipbroking company registered in 1981, providing a comprehensive suite of maritime brokerage services. The company operates across multiple specialized segments including fishing vessel brokering (particularly Tuna Purse Seiners), marine/offshore equipment services, ship demolition, container ship chartering, towage and salvage, Ro/Ro and passenger vessel services, newbuilding contracting, and second-hand vessel sale & purchase. With over 265 ships brokered since 1990 and operations spanning the five continents, the company serves as an intermediary for shipowners, charterers, and operators across the global maritime industry.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Second-hand Ship Sale & Purchase Brokered intermediation of second-hand vessel sale and purchase transactions for shipowners, charterers, and operators across global flags. Tradex has brokered over 265 ships since 1990, supported by modern software and hardware systems for market analysis.
• Newbuilding Contracting Services Full-package newbuilding services including design, shipyard selection, construction surveillance, and financing arrangements, leveraging direct access to all Spanish shipyards and most Far Eastern shipbuilders.
• Ship Demolition Brokering Ship demolition brokerage services with established relationships with domestic breakers, worldwide cash buyers, and demolition yards globally.
• Container Ship Chartering Container vessel chartering services with direct access to all shipowners and charterers in Spain, facilitating market positioning in the container shipping sector.
• Fishing Vessel Brokering Specialized shipbroking services for fishing vessels, particularly Tuna Purse Seiners and Freezers, leveraging direct access to vessel information and proximity to major fishing vessel owners in the Basque Country and North Atlantic.
• Ro/Ro and Passenger Vessel Services Chartering and sale/purchase brokerage for conventional ferries, fast ferries, RoRos, and Ropaxes serving routes to Balearic/Canary Islands and North African cities (Ceuta and Melilla).
• Towage and Salvage Brokerage Commercial towage and salvage brokerage services, intervening on behalf of shipowners, underwriters, and P&I Clubs to secure optimal solutions for difficult maritime situations.
• Marine and Offshore Equipment Brokering Chartering and acquisition services for marine equipment including dredgers, pontoons, hopper barges, floating cranes, and other marine/offshore structures along Spain's coastline.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights1 record

Direct peers

• Simpson Spence Young (SSY): International shipbroker providing S&P, chartering, newbuilding, and towage & offshore services from offices worldwide. A direct competitor to Tradex across most segments including towage.
• Lorentzen & Stemoco: Norwegian shipbroking firm specializing in sale & purchase, newbuilding, and chartering, particularly in the offshore and specialized vessel segments. A direct peer to Tradex in the niche independent shipbroker category.
• Howe Robinson Partners: London-based shipbrokers providing S&P, newbuilding, chartering, and project cargo services globally. A direct peer comparable to Tradex as a traditional shipbroker serving similar principals.
• Fearnleys: Oslo-based shipbroker offering sale & purchase, newbuilding, chartering, and research services globally. Comparable to Tradex as a traditional full-service shipbroker, though serving primarily Norwegian and offshore markets rather than fishing vessels.
• Marcon International: Shipbroker specializing in sale & purchase of specialized and offshore vessels including tugs, barges, dredgers, and workboats. Highly comparable to Tradex's marine/offshore equipment brokering line and its niche specialist positioning.
• Allied Shipbrokers: Greek shipbroking firm offering S&P, newbuilding, chartering, and financing services with Mediterranean focus. Direct peer to Tradex in the European shipbroker ecosystem serving similar principals.
• Barry Rogliano Salles (BRS): French international shipbroking group offering S&P, newbuilding, chartering, and yacht services. A direct peer to Tradex in the European maritime brokerage landscape with similar service breadth.

Broad incumbents

• Braemar ACM (Braemar Plc): Global shipbroking and maritime services group covering S&P, chartering, and offshore broking. A broad incumbent comparable in service breadth to Tradex, but with a much larger institutional platform.
• Maersk Broker: Danish-headquartered shipbroker and shipping services provider offering vessel chartering, S&P, and freight services globally. Comparable to Tradex across chartering and S&P, but with a much larger container-shipping-aligned platform.
• Clarkson PLC: The world's largest shipbroker and integrated shipping services provider, offering S&P, chartering, newbuilding, offshore, and research across all vessel segments. Directly comparable to Tradex as a shipbroker, but operating at vastly greater scale with global offices.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tradex-s-a-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Tradex S.A.