Your trades, in your own vault

TradeMe is built on MeCentral, a personal vault for your important documents. Every trade agreement you make here is filed into your vault, so the record of what you agreed belongs to you, not to us.

What gets filed

The trade agreement

As soon as everyone accepts a trade, we write up the agreement: the trade code, who's involved (first name and last initial), what each person gives and gets, the amounts and stated values, the safety checks you'll follow, and the version of the community rules you agreed to. A copy goes to each person's own vault.

The completion receipt

When everyone confirms the work was done, a short receipt follows, filed the same way.

How you get your vault

  1. Your first agreement is filed under the email address on your TradeMe account.
  2. MeCentral emails you to say a document is waiting.
  3. To open it, MeCentral asks for your TradeMe trade code (it looks like TM-7KQ4X2RP and is on your trade page). That proves the document is really yours.
  4. After that, every new agreement and receipt appears in the same vault.

You can see where each document is ("filing", "filed — check your email to claim your vault", "we're confirming", or "needs a look") on the Vault page in your account.

Why we do it this way

  • It's your record. If there's ever a question about what was agreed, you have the signed document, not just our word for it.
  • It outlasts us. Your documents stay in your vault even if you close your TradeMe account.
  • It helps at tax time. Barter can count as income. Your agreements and receipts are a tidy record of what you traded.

A live copy of your trades (optional)

With "Keep a copy of my trades in my MeCentral vault" switched on in your settings, we also keep a short, up-to-date summary of each trade (status, what you give and get, when and where you meet, and your check-ins) and of your own listings. It never includes other people's addresses, reports or staff notes. You can switch it off at any time.

What we never send

  • Your password, or anything about your ID beyond "checked".
  • Other members' addresses or contact details.
  • Reports, safety alerts or our team's notes.