Abu Dhabi’s International Holding Company (IHC) has established Rebound Ltd to create an innovative solution to reduce the world’s plastic pollution. The new subsidiary will launch Rebound Plastic Exchange, the global quality-assured trading platform for plastic feedstock that enables buyers and sellers to efficiently trade recycled plastic with trust and confidence. 

Scheduled to open for trading in mid-2022, Rebound Plastic Exchange will introduce globally recognized standards, certification, insurance and quality assurance into the supply chain. The platform aims to increase the efficiency of recycling plastic at scale, provide new economic opportunities and reduce the impact of plastic pollution on our planet, unlocking a global business opportunity worth AED 56 billion. 

Rebound Plastic Exchange was founded by IHC, a multi-sector conglomerate and the largest company listed in the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange. Syed Basar Shueb, IHC’s chief executive officer and managing director, says, "This is a breakthrough concept coming from the UAE to the world with significant potential. The availability of a reliable advanced recycling system will play an essential role in helping address plastic in the environment of many countries around the globe. We are confident our investment in Rebound Plastic Exchange will be another successful business for IHC, and we are evaluating wide-scale deployment, in other locations around the world." 

Maryam Al Mansoori, general manager of Rebound Ltd, says, “We’ve developed a global trading solution that offers a large-scale opportunity to reduce some of the world’s plastic pollution via recycling. By capturing the value of plastic feedstock, we allow companies across all sectors, from apparel to automotive, to access recycled content with confidence, while creating new opportunities for communities in the value chain to grow their economies.” 

Close to 100% of plastic waste can be recycled, but the global rate of plastic recycling sits at just 15%.1 Rebound Plastic Exchange will fill a significant gap in the market, facilitating a truly circular economy as it creates a quality-assured platform to purchase and provide feedstock of recycled plastic to meet the growing demand from consumer goods companies. There is expected to be a 6-million-ton deficit2 of recycled content based on the many commitments of global brands, many of whom are aiming for 20-30% increases3 by 2025. 

Rebound Plastic Exchange creates new economic opportunities and a point of market entry for the estimated 80% of countries without domestic capacities to process or consume plastic feedstock, or both. Its passporting system will also support governments’ commitments to the Basel Convention’s Amendments while responsibly participating in the trade of plastic. By 2025, it is estimated that roughly 5 million tons of recycled plastic will have been traded via Rebound. 

DHL Global Forwarding is one of the launch partners to support the quality assurance process which Rebound Plastic Exchange has created as part of its verification protocol. Each product will be sent by DHL to undergo laboratory tests based on accepted international standards before being traded. 

Amadou Diallo, CEO of DHL Global Forwarding Middle East & Africa says, “As the global leader in logistics, we look forward to making Rebound Plastic Exchange’s supply chains more sustainable and achieving environmental targets and business ambitions together. The symbolic signing of our partnership agreement at our MEA Innovation Centre also underlines our will to support UAE based Start Ups to connect people and improve lives.” 

Douglas Woodring, Lead Expert of Rebound Ltd, says, “Rebound Plastic Exchange is the needed intervention which will transform the world’s plastic recycling industry. For the first time, the trade of plastic feedstock will see the same levels of trust and transparency that exist in the market for other commodities, increasing business confidence and encouraging greater trading volume, which will mean a reduction in plastic going to landfills.”

1 OECD. (2018). Improving Markets for Recycled Plastics: Trends, Prospects and Policy Responses.; World Economic Forum. (2020). Plastics, the Circular Economy and Global Trade.

2 Ellen MacArthur Foundation. (2021). Global Commitment; Woodring, D. & Hyde, T. (2020). Recycled plastic: There’s market demand, but where’s the supply?

3 World Economic Forum. (2020). Plastics, the Circular Economy and Global Trade; Ellen MacArthur Foundation. (2021). Global Commitment; European Plastics Pact. (2021). Signatories - A full list of the current European Plastics Pact Signatories.