Industry News

Member Updates:

eBay's 2026 Recommerce Report highlights growing global demand for secondhand goods. Research covering over 10,500 consumers found that 47% purchase secondhand at least monthly, 76% bought pre-owned goods in the past year and 89% expect to maintain or increase spending in 2027. Read more.

IQ Reseller integrates with Rejoose to automate carbon reporting. The integration enables asset-level carbon and circularity reporting directly within IQ Reseller, helping ITADs and resellers provide customers with validated environmental data without additional development. Read more.

Collaborations and Partnerships:

Circ and Huafon partner to develop an industrial-scale textile recycling facility in China. The project will use Circ’s technology to recover polyester and cellulosic materials from blended textile waste, with an initial processing capacity of 200 tonnes daily. Read more.

Business Developments:

Flex IT and T1A unite under XTENTEC, creating circular technology group generating $150m annually. The integration combines IT asset collection, secure data erasure, refurbishment and distribution through a European network of approximately 13,000 resellers, with further acquisitions planned. Read more.

IKEA launches secondhand furniture marketplace across the UK and Ireland. The platform enables customers to buy and sell pre-owned IKEA products, with prices averaging 60% below new equivalents. Its existing European marketplaces have attracted 15 million visits and generated 95,700 listings. Read more.

Ontic invests $30m in global aircraft repair and maintenance infrastructure. The investment includes new facilities in the UK and US, with its 72,000 sq ft Tewkesbury site bringing together 200 specialists to expand repair capabilities and extend aircraft lifecycles. Read more.

Nitori invests ¥2.5bn in major furniture recycling facility in Japan. Scheduled to open in 2028, the centre will process over 10,000 tonnes of discarded furniture annually, with the Japanese retailer targeting more than ¥100m in annual disposal and processing cost savings. Read more.

Market and Regional Developments:

Ellen MacArthur Foundation calls for a stronger EU Circular Economy Act to unlock circular markets. Its recommendations include harmonised cross-border regulations, VAT incentives for repair and resale, and greater investment in circular supply chains to strengthen European competitiveness. Read more.

UK loses over 200,000 tonnes of plastic recycling capacity amid calls for government action. A University of Birmingham report reveals domestic facilities can process just 23% of plastic packaging placed on the market, urging greater investment and a national circular plastics strategy. Read more.

Investment News

M&A:

Asurion completes acquisition of Domestic & General, expanding global device and appliance care. The deal combines Asurion's technology protection and repair services with D&G's operations spanning 12 markets, over 7 million subscription customers and 2.6 million appliance repairs annually. Read more.

Liquidity Services acquires Invaluable marketplace for $80m. The acquisition adds Invaluable, AuctionZip and RFC Auction Systems to its portfolio, expanding its presence in the global resale market. The platforms serve approximately 4 million registered bidders and processed over $500m in gross merchandise sales in 2025. Read more.

Investment and Financing:

VoltR secures €22m to accelerate second-life battery manufacturing in Europe. Backed by Bpifrance and Decathlon Pulse, the investment will double the size of its French facility and increase production capacity sixfold within two years, creating around 40 jobs. Read more.

Reuse raises $21m Series A after generating $30m in 2025 revenue. Led by At One Ventures, the funding will support expansion into Colombia and strengthen its electronics trade-in and refurbishment operations, with revenue projected to reach $55m in 2026. Read more.

ABN AMRO and Aviva Investors commit €100m to circular concrete production. The investment will support SL Materials’ expansion across Europe, using technology that recovers cementitious materials, sand and gravel from demolition waste for reuse in new construction. Read more.

SQM and Marubeni increase investment in UK battery recycler Altilium. The strategic investors have provided further funding to support development of Altilium’s first commercial battery materials refinery in Plymouth, designed to process 24,000 end-of-life EV batteries annually. Read more.

Grow your business with Circular Connect 📈 

Join our global business network connecting companies across the circular economy. Raise your profile, reach new customers, build valuable relationships and unlock new opportunities.

👉️ Discover Membership 👈️ 

Have a great weekend and we’ll see you again on Monday.

Cheers to circularity,

#TeamCircularConnect #ConnectingTheCircularEconomy