Industry News

Collaborations and Partnerships:

HP and Asurion launch subscription-based device care service. HP Care Complete combines protection, maintenance and technical support across PCs and connected devices, including plans covering PCs of any brand or age. Customers also receive access to cleaning and tune-ups through nearly 700 uBreakiFix locations across the US. Read more.

Indorama and Suntory partner on circular PET technology in Thailand. The partnership will introduce Flake-to-Preform technology at commercial scale in Southeast Asia for the first time, with capacity equivalent to around 400 million PET bottles annually. Read more.

Ramaco and roboLoop target critical minerals from e-waste. The companies have signed an MOU to test and validate gallium-rich materials recovered from electronics using roboLoop's AI-powered robotic disassembly technology. Read more.

DMU becomes first UK university to embed CircKit technology. De Montfort University will integrate CircKit's circular fashion platform across its curriculum, giving students practical experience with lifecycle assessment, circular design, EPR and Digital Product Passports. Read more.

Company Updates:

Sims Lifecycle Services revenue jumps 77%. The ITAD and data centre decommissioning business delivered A$757m in FY26 revenue, with underlying EBIT rising from A$32.6m to A$172.7m as repurposed volumes reached 16.8 million units. Read more.

IKEA brings second-hand marketplace to the UK. The furniture giant will launch its peer-to-peer resale platform in the UK later this year, allowing IKEA Family members to buy and sell pre-owned IKEA products directly with each other. Read more.

ZTO’s reverse logistics volumes grow 80%. The Chinese logistics firm reported approximately 80% year-on-year growth in return parcel volumes during Q2, reaching around 9.8 million parcels per day and generating higher per-parcel profit than standard e-commerce deliveries. Read more.

Currys completes 1.6 million technology repairs. The retailer completed 1.6 million repairs across its operations last year, supported by around 1,500 repair engineers and one of Europe's largest technology repair centres. Read more.

Fujifilm begins full-scale operations at Philippines Circular Manufacturing Center. The facility will remanufacture used multifunction devices collected across Asia-Pacific, expanding Fujifilm's regional collection, remanufacturing and supply network. Read more.

Regional Developments:

Tersus Solutions expands into Canada with new recommerce facility. The 25,000+ sq ft Calgary site is Tersus' first facility outside the US and will initially support lululemon's Like New resale programme. Read more.

63% of Canadians participated in the secondary technology market in the past year. Best Buy Canada research found that almost two-thirds of adults surveyed had bought refurbished or open-box technology, or traded in a device. Participation rose to 71% among Gen Z, with 44% citing environmental impact as a factor. Read more.

New Mexico launches $11.5m circular economy funding programme. The New Mexico Environment Department has launched its first Circular Economy Plan alongside $11.5 million in funding to advance reuse, material recovery and local supply chains across the state. Read more.

China accelerates recycling of wind and solar equipment. China is accelerating rules for the recycling and reuse of retired renewable-energy equipment, with plans to establish a closed-loop system for industry waste by 2030. Read more.

Featured Insights:

New report maps the 100 platforms powering circular electronics. Peter Evans of All Things Circular has analysed 100 platforms across 30+ countries, revealing how marketplaces, recommerce, trade-in, repair, rental and recovery are shaping the global circular electronics economy. Download the report below.

Investment News

Venture and Growth Capital:

US DOE awards $4.8m to advance circular technologies. The REMADE Institute has awarded funding to 10 projects spanning electronics, textiles, critical materials, aluminium and remanufacturing, with a focus on moving technologies towards commercial deployment. Read more.

Clarity Systems raises $4.4m to tackle returns fraud. The startup uses advanced imaging and AI to inspect returned products in around three seconds without opening the packaging, identifying counterfeits, product swaps and missing components. Read more.

Eco Gadgets raises seed funding to expand used electronics platform. The Indian startup has secured investment from Amity Technology Incubator to develop its consumer-to-retailer platform connecting owners of used electronics with verified retailers. Read more.

Want to generate new partnerships or inbound opportunities in 2026?

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

Cheers to circularity,

#TeamCircularConnect #ConnectingTheCircularEconomy