Plastics Circularity Investment Tracker
The Circulate Initiative’s Plastics Circularity Investment Tracker provides data for private investments in plastics circularity globally.
Investment data is available by circularity activity, geography, and investment source for deals that took place between January 1, 2018 and December 31, 2024.
As a new feature for 2024, investment data is organized by the circular economy activities as defined in the International Finance Corporation’s Harmonized Circular Economy Finance Guidelines.
An estimated US$ 15.4 trillion in private sector investments and US$ 1.5 trillion in public expenditure are needed between 2025 and 2040 to reduce annual mismanaged plastic volumes by 90% relative to 2019 levels.
However, there is limited transparency around the financing of plastics circularity solutions and a lack of data or resources on investment activity to assess the investment opportunity. Governments, investors, multilateral organizations, and other stakeholders committed to solving the global plastic pollution crisis need to have a clear view of capital being deployed to ensure funding barriers to circularity can be addressed.
The Plastics Circularity Investment Tracker aims to be an objective source of data that supports investors, policy makers, companies, and other stakeholders to understand the state of private investment in plastics circularity and take action to increase investment.
Scope of the Plastics Circularity Investment Tracker
The tool allows users to explore the data using the following filters:
Year
Data is available for the period of January 1, 2018 to December 31, 2024.
Geography
The Plastics Circularity Investment Tracker consolidates deals that have taken place globally, with this edition capturing activity across 107 countries.
Circular Economy Activity Categories
In this edition, the Plastics Circularity Investment Tracker classifies the investments into four Circular Economy Activity Categories drawn from the International Finance Corporation’s (IFC) Harmonized Circular Economy Finance Guidelines.
- Circular Design and Production
- Circular Use
- +Circularity Enablers
- Value Recovery
Archetypes
Plastics circularity solutions across upstream and downstream products and services, classified into eight archetypes:
- Materials
- Redesign
- Refill/Reuse
- Services
- Operational Platforms
- Digital Mapping
- Recovery
- Recycling
Investment Categories
Investment categories include:
- Accelerator/Incubator Investments
- Corporate Investments
- Financing by Banks
- Individual/Crowdfunding/Philanthropic Investments
- Private Equity
- Initial Public Offering (IPO)
- Venture Capital
Public funding by national, state, or local governments is excluded.
Who this Tool is for
Corporates
Corporates can identify investment trends and gaps in the value chain to inform their business strategies.
Banks & Financial Insitutions
Banks and financial institutions can assess the regions and solutions that have received more investment, which can support their investment and loan allocation decisions.
Investors in the Circular Economy
Investors can identify market opportunities and the types of financing that have been deployed in order to plan for funding strategies.
Entrepreneurs in the Circular Economy
Entrepreneurs can identify key sources of financing that have funded plastics circularity solutions, and potentially connect with capital providers.
Testimonials
This is a very helpful tool for those of us working to drive impact and fund solutions to end plastic waste in the environment. Investment of private capital is critically needed, but there is limited transparency around financial returns; as a result, investors lack a visible pipeline and track record of deals to evaluate opportunities. So, bravo to The Circulate Initiative team for this initiative and to bring more much-needed attention to this matter.
Tam Nguyen
Senior Advisor,
Alliance to End Plastic Waste
At WWF Plastic Smart Cities, we recognize the importance of working with social innovators across Asia to identify, pilot and scale solutions to tackle the global plastic crisis. Plastics circularity is key in this equation. Which is why this report by The Circulate Initiative is important in providing insights and guidance on where investments are most strategic or needed. A great read.
Yumi Nishikawa
Plastic Smart Cities Lead,
WWF
Resources
Key Insights
Launched ahead of INC-5.2, the Plastics Circularity Investment Tracker has been updated with 2024 transaction data. View key insights from this latest update.
Tracking Private Investments in Plastics Circularity Ahead of INC-5.2
Reflections on the state of private investment in plastics circularity and what’s needed to close the funding gap.
Case Examples
Discover case examples that highlight key learnings from the investment journeys of three companies advancing plastics circularity across various geographies and circular economy activities.
Methodology
Explore the definitions of key terms used in the Plastics Circularity Investment Tracker and the detailed research methodology.
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently asked questions about the Plastics Circularity Investment Tracker.
Explore the Plastics Circularity Investment Tracker
Use the tool to reveal data about investment activity in plastics circularity.