One Account, Both Sides of the Market
Brokers and trading companies active on both the buy and the sell side
By the StrategicRawMaterial team · · 8 min read
Most companies in critical materials do not sit neatly on one side of a trade. A trader sells NdPr oxide this month and buys dysprosium next month. A processor sources feedstock and places finished product. A broker works both sides for different clients.
StrategicRawMaterial is designed for exactly this. There is no "buyer account" or "seller account". There is one verified account per company, and every account can buy and sell. The direction belongs to each individual posting, not to you.
This guide is the starting point for every new member. It explains how the marketplace is organised, how buying and selling fit together in one account, and how to get productive in your first week. For step-by-step detail on each side, see the Buyer's Guide and the Seller's Guide.
In short: One free, verified company account. Post Offers to sell and Requests to buy. Bid on Offers and quote on Requests. Every piece of material is verified before it is traded, every participant is anonymous until matched, and the only fee is the seller-paid verification fee of USD 100 per started metric ton.
How the marketplace works
StrategicRawMaterial is a two-way, verified, anonymous marketplace for rare earths and other critical materials.
There are two kinds of posting, and two ways to respond to them:
| You have material | You need material | |
|---|---|---|
| You post | an Offer, with your asking price as a floor | a Request, with your maximum price as a ceiling |
| You respond to others with | a quote on their Request | a bid on their Offer |
Every posting runs as a sealed auction. Participants see how many submissions have been made, never their contents. When the auction closes, submissions are scored on price, volume, lead time and location, and the highest score wins. There is no negotiation and no hand-picking. The same rules apply to everyone.
Three principles apply to every trade:
- Every company is verified. Each member passes a KYC/KYB check with our identity partner, Entrust, before it can trade.
- Every unit of material is verified before it is traded. Offers go live, and quotes stand, only after independent verification by TracePass.
- Everyone is anonymous until matched. Company names and locations are hidden across the marketplace, and are revealed only to the two parties of a deal.
Getting set up
Onboarding is the same whether you plan to buy, sell or both:
- Request access from our homepage with your company details and the materials you trade.
- Application review by our team.
- Activate your account from the invitation email and set your password. You can browse the marketplace immediately.
- Verify your identity: select Verify identity in the header, then Request verification. Once the KYC/KYB check clears, you receive the Verified Identity badge.
- Start trading. Both directions unlock at once, each starting at the Starter pathway.
Joining and verification are free.
Finding your way around
Once you sign in, everything is one click from the main menu:
| Menu | What you use it for |
|---|---|
| Dashboard | Your overview: both pathways at a glance and your recent bids and quotes |
| Marketplace | Two tabs. Offers shows material for sale (you bid); Requests shows material wanted (you quote) |
| Post Offer / Request | One form for both directions. Choose Offer to sell or Request to buy |
| Activity | Everything you have submitted (your bids and quotes) and everything submitted on your postings, with live status |
| Billing | Verification fees and their status, the only charges on the platform |
| Profile | Company details, badges and your two pathway ladders with progress toward the next level |
The notification bell in the header keeps you up to date as auctions close and deals open, and a report icon on every screen lets you flag anything that does not look right.
Two pathways, growing independently
Your account carries two pathways, one for buying and one for selling. Each follows the same ladder:
| Level | Reached by | Active postings | Volume per posting | Shortest lead time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | Identity verification | 1 | up to 1,000 kg | 60 days |
| Verified Partner | 1 settled deal in that direction | 2 | up to 10,000 kg | 30 days |
| Premier Partner | 5 settled deals in that direction | 5 | up to 50,000 kg | 14 days |
The two ladders are independent. Settled sales raise your seller pathway, and settled purchases raise your buyer pathway. A company that sells regularly but has just started buying may be a Premier Partner seller and a Starter buyer at the same time. That is expected: each pathway reflects your proven track record in that direction.
- Active postings counts everything live in that direction. For selling, that is your Offers and your quotes on Requests. For buying, it is your Requests and your bids on Offers.
- Promotion is automatic when a deal settles, and you are notified by email and in the app.
- The marketplace adapts to you. Each tab shows the opportunities that fit the pathway for that direction, so what you see is what you can act on.
From match to settlement
Whichever side you are on, a won auction follows the same path.
- Matched & Contracted. The deal workspace opens. You and your counterparty see each other's company name, contact email, contact phone and profile summary. The contract is generated automatically from the terms you both agreed to.
- Delivery and payment, arranged directly between the two parties under the contract. StrategicRawMaterial takes no commission and does not hold funds.
- Settled. Once delivery and payment are confirmed, the deal is marked settled and counts toward the relevant pathway.
If your submission does not win, you are told how it ranked, and you can open a dispute within 48 hours if you believe something went wrong. Sellers get one more safeguard: a losing quote on a Request is automatically relisted as a live Offer, so the material verification you paid for keeps working.
Your first week: a checklist
A practical sequence for new members:
- Complete identity verification. Nothing else unlocks until it clears, so request it on your first sign-in.
- Review your Profile. Check your company details and look at both pathway ladders.
- Survey both tabs of the Marketplace. The Offers tab shows available verified supply, and the Requests tab shows live demand. Together they give you a current read on the market.
- Decide on your first move.
- Need material? Bid on a live Offer, or post a Request. Buying is free.
- Have material? Post an Offer, or quote on a live Request. Allow time for material verification before your posting goes live.
- Keep your first posting within Starter limits (up to 1,000 kg, a lead time of at least 60 days). The form applies these for you.
- Watch Activity and notifications as your auction runs and closes.
- Settle your first deal. One settled deal moves that direction to Verified Partner: ten times the volume and a second active slot.
Glossary
- Offer
- a posting of material for sale, with an asking price that acts as a floor.
- Request
- a posting of material wanted, with a maximum price that acts as a ceiling.
- Bid
- a buyer's sealed submission on an Offer.
- Quote
- a seller's sealed submission on a Request.
- Material verification
- independent pre-trade audit of material by TracePass, paid by the seller at USD 100 per started metric ton.
- Verified Identity / Material Verified
- badges showing that a company has passed KYC/KYB, and that it has had material independently verified.
- Pathway
- your trading level in one direction (Starter, Verified Partner, Premier Partner), which sets your active postings, volume and lead-time limits.
- Matched & Contracted
- the state of a new deal. Parties are revealed and the contract is in place.
- Settled
- the final state of a deal, once delivery and payment are confirmed.
Join the market
Whether you are buying, selling or both, it starts with one application.