Tom Melvin Baiki, a Congolese entrepreneur based in the United Kingdom, specializing in architecture, biomedical engineering, and digital solutions design, answers questions from Financial Afrik. Driven by a vision of digital and economic transformation of Africa, he works on developing innovative technologies capable of meeting the continent’s needs.
He is the founder of VyteVyte, a participatory digital ecosystem aimed at democratizing commerce, supporting entrepreneurship, strengthening economic inclusion, and creating numerous job opportunities through collaborative economy. In this endeavor, he closely collaborates with Gabrielle ThyThy Ndaya, a Congolese entrepreneur based in the United Kingdom, recognized for her commitment to investment and economic development in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Together, they share the ambition to develop innovative African technologies, designed on the continent to address its challenges and establish themselves internationally. Their vision is based on the belief that Africa must become a major player in technological innovation by creating, developing, and exporting its own solutions, rather than just consuming them.
Hello Mr. Baiki. Can you introduce yourself to our readers and talk about your background?
I am Tom Melvin Baiki, co-founder of VyteVyte.
I am a biomedical engineer by training and have a solid experience in the fintech sector. For 27 years, I have been working in this field, particularly in payment systems, digital solutions development, and technological infrastructure.
Today, we are launching a solution that addresses major challenges on a pan-African scale. The continent faces significant issues in digital commerce and access to services. Many African entrepreneurs do not have the means to open physical stores in major cities.
It is from this observation that we have imagined and developed a participatory and inclusive digital space. Our goal is to make it easier for entrepreneurs to sell their products and services, while promoting the local economy and encouraging youth entrepreneurship.
What is VyteVyte and what is its mission?
Our mission is to create a participatory and social space that generates real economic value.
We are developing an application inspired by social networks, but going beyond their traditional use. It is a real work tool designed to allow young people to sell online, offer their services, manage deliveries, and develop their activities in a digital environment.
Our ambition is to build a secure, well-structured, and participatory ecosystem where everyone can undertake, collaborate, and create value with confidence.
How does your application innovate compared to existing platforms?
Today, most social networks, especially large international platforms, do not truly provide the Congolese youth with a real work tool.
Our vision goes beyond mere entertainment. It is no longer just about chatting online or scrolling through content without creating value. We offer a solution that allows young people to get involved, actively participate, and become true economic actors.
That is why, at VyteVyte, we have established a win-win revenue model. Users create content, develop their activities on the platform, and are remunerated based on the value they bring.
What added value will VyteVyte bring to the State, users, and the economy of the DRC?
The advantage of VyteVyte is that we contribute to transforming the informal economy into a formal economy. We will structure the traders operating in the DRC so that they are clearly identified.
Once identified, the taxation and social contributions process can be better organized, as all traders selling online via VyteVyte will be duly registered and identified.
What is VyteVyte’s economic model and what are the main sources of revenue generated by the platform?
For the platform, the economic model is simple. We operate on a win-win principle. VyteVyte users become true economic actors.
They create their digital store, sell their products, and develop their activities. VyteVyte does not impose high fees on them. It is not a subscription, but simply platform fees intended to cover maintenance and service operation.
Furthermore, we contribute to promoting the local economy by offering visibility to businesses present in the DRC. That is our added value. We want Congolese products to be visible throughout the territory and for every citizen to easily access the digital market of Congo.
Is the 10% commission charged on each transaction your main source of revenue, and what transaction volume target do you aim for to ensure the platform’s profitability?
We understand that in the current ecosystem, purchasing power remains limited. That is why we do not want to burden traders with heavy charges. Our goal is simply to charge a 10% commission on transactions made through the platform.
For our first year of launch, we aim for 10,000 users in the first month, with an activity rate between 30% and 40%. Our priority is to attract local businesses and enterprises.
In the longer term, we plan to reach 120,000 users in the first year, 200,000 in the second year, and 300,000 in the third year.
We will also implement a subscription system for companies wishing to benefit from better visibility on the platform, particularly by appearing prominently in search results. The subscription fee will be defined based on the needs of companies, in collaboration with our sales team.
The revenues generated by delivery fees are distributed among VyteVyte, the couriers, and the relay points. How does this sharing model create a sustainable and economically viable value chain for all ecosystem actors?
It is simple. We have a product that turns the user into a relay point. In other words, a trader with a store on VyteVyte also becomes a relay point.
They may not necessarily sell the merchandise, but they earn money by receiving parcels and delivering them to customers. This is already a real added value for local commerce.
For individuals, it is just as simple. A user with a motorcycle can become a courier. On the platform, they can access content, watch videos, and use different services while earning money through deliveries. This is a real added value.
Finally, for users who do not have a motorcycle or a store, we allow them to become traders, meaning online traders without a physical store or stock. This is a great added value for the economy, as it enables everyone to participate in economic activity and generate income.
How does VyteVyte ensure transaction security, seller reliability, and delivery service quality to enhance user trust?
Of course, this is a major question because it is at the core of our economic model.
We are neither a wallet nor a financial institution. We are not reinventing the wheel: solutions already exist. We rely on existing infrastructures, including mobile money and electronic wallets already available on the market.
All transactions are carried out through these existing wallets. We simply use a secure revenue-sharing model called “one-to-many.” This model automatically distributes a payment among three actors: the courier, the relay point – or the trader – and the platform.
What concrete impact does VyteVyte aim to have on job creation, formalization of local commerce, and economic inclusion of youth and SMEs?
Certainly. What we are doing is creating indirect jobs. Our goal is to generate 10,000 indirect jobs in the first month and 120,000 in a year. Traders selling online via VyteVyte will directly benefit from this economic ecosystem.
Additionally, we are implementing an identification system that will allow relevant authorities to monitor activities and transactions on the platform, in compliance with regulations.
We are also developing a model dedicated to couriers, with the goal of creating nearly 10,000 delivery opportunities in a year.
Our ambition is to offer young people real economic opportunities, so they can generate income through digital means rather than remain inactive or use the Internet solely for entertainment.
At the same time, we are creating direct jobs. We will establish technical, sales, and marketing teams whose mission is to ensure the development, operation, and growth of the platform.
VyteVyte is not just a downloadable application. It is a real digital infrastructure designed with the realities of the Congolese economic model in mind, aiming to promote job creation and support the development of the local economy.
In conclusion, what message do you want to convey to users, entrepreneurs, and investors interested in VyteVyte?
Today, we are very open because we have clearly defined VyteVyte as an open and inclusive technological platform.
We invite all traders, all Congolese, and anyone selling in Congo to seize this opportunity to make their products visible and accessible.
We also encourage Congolese youth to use this important tool to learn, sell on VyteVyte, and generate income.
The good news with VyteVyte is that you can create your online store without having stock at home. It is a model similar to dropshipping, but our approach is different: we are not just doing dropshipping, we are primarily seeking to promote the local economy and empower Congolese entrepreneurs to sell online.
