In the past, discarded LCD TVs, monitors, or industrial panels were often considered "electronic waste" and flowed into small workshops at extremely low prices. However, in 2026, with the explosive growth in global supply chain demand for recycled materials, LCD buyback is no longer a simple matter of "collecting scrap," but a sophisticated game concerning resource competition, data security, and green compliance.
Why has LCD buyback suddenly become so popular?
The biggest changes in the past decade can be summarized in three keywords:
1. "Urban Mining" from Concept to Reality
What's inside a discarded LCD panel? Many people think it's broken glass. In fact, it contains indium—a rare metal widely used in touchscreens and conductive films. Indium is extremely dispersed in the Earth's crust, but it is highly concentrated in LCD panels. The latest wet refining technology can achieve an indium recovery rate of over 90%.
Furthermore, liquid crystal materials can be purified into industrial raw materials, and glass substrates and backlight components can be separated and entered into the building materials or lighting industry chain.
In other words, every discarded screen is a miniature "urban gold mine." This isn't hype; it's a proven economic fact.
2. The EU's ESPR Regulation Rewrites the Game
The EU's Sustainable Product Design Regulation (ESPR), which will come into effect in 2025, requires electronic products exported to Europe to prove they contain recycled materials and have traceable disassembly capabilities.
This means that panel products that don't use recycled materials may be unable to enter the European market in the future. According to feedback from several panel manufacturers and OEMs we contacted, they have been actively seeking stable
LCD buyback channels since the second half of 2025—not for profit, but to obtain compliance certification.
3. Recycling Prices Are Indeed Rising
The most obvious change is in price. Since the beginning of 2026, the recycling price of LCD waste has increased by approximately 15% to 20% year-on-year. The main reason is the price fluctuations of upstream indium and glass substrates, coupled with recycling capacity failing to keep up with the rate of waste production.
In short: demand exceeds supply of waste screens.
The Real Problems Beneath the Glamour
Great opportunities, but also many pitfalls. Over the past decade, we've likely encountered more pitfalls than most of our peers.
Pain Point 1: Inflated Prices, Price Slashing Upon Acceptance
This is the most common tactic in the industry. They first quote an exorbitant price, far exceeding market rates, to lock in customers. Then, once the goods arrive at the warehouse, they maliciously lower the price using excuses like "damaged appearance" or "inconsistent grade." Many factory purchasing managers have suffered in silence this way—the goods have already been shipped, and there's no going back.
Industry Consensus: Recyclers willing to visit your factory in person to inspect the goods and provide on-site quotes are generally more reliable than those quoting exorbitant prices over the phone.
Pain Point 2: Neglected Data Security
Smart screens with touch functionality and industrial control screens with storage—these devices may contain production data or even trade secrets. If recyclers lack data destruction capabilities, this information could be leaked.
According to our understanding, in 2024, scrapped industrial control screens from a factory in South China entered the secondhand market, and their production parameters were obtained by competitors. That loss far exceeded the revenue from selling the scrap screens.
Pain Point 3: Difficulty in Disposing of Small Batch Inventory
Many small and medium-sized factories, repair shops, and even individual sellers have only a few dozen or a few hundred LCDs on hand. Large recyclers don't want them; small vendors pose a risk of overcharging.
This problem has persisted, and there is still no good industry solution.
From "Selling Scrap" to "Selling Assets"
The most positive change in recent years is the shift in companies' attitudes towards LCD inventory.
Previously, stagnant screens, returned materials, and scrapped products in factory warehouses were considered "trouble"—they took up space and required expensive disposal. Now, more and more companies are beginning to view them as "assets."
According to our observations, inquiries have increased significantly since 2024. Our clients primarily come from two categories:
Large OEM manufacturers: Large and diverse inventory requiring comprehensive factory-wide recycling services.
Trading companies: Holding returned materials and discontinued (EOL) models, needing quick monetization.
Correspondingly, industry service models are also upgrading—previously rare services like comprehensive factory-wide recycling, returned goods customs clearance, and cross-border buybacks are now becoming standard.
Our Business Evolution
As an industry participant, our business is also evolving.
In 2024, we expanded our recycling scope from LCD screens to a broader range of ITADs, including:
Mobile phone motherboards (iPhone, Samsung)
Camera modules (iPhone, Samsung)
Mobile phone back covers (iPhone)
Flex cables/FPCs (iPhone, Samsung)
HDDs, CPU processors, DDR memory modules
The reason is simple: customer needs are changing. More and more companies want a one-stop solution for various electronic materials, rather than dealing with different recyclers separately.
An undervalued market
This year marks our tenth year in LCD buyback.
From our first order from Nick in 2016 to expanding our business to the full range of ITAD products in 2024—this market has been growing steadily, but we still believe it's undervalued.
The reason is simple: the rate at which global e-waste is generated far outpaces the rate at which recycling capacity is built.
According to industry data, the number of discarded mobile phone LCD screens alone reaches hundreds of millions annually. Of these, probably less than half actually enters formal recycling channels. The rest either sits idle in warehouses or ends up in small workshops lacking environmental certifications.
This presents both environmental risks and business opportunities. And we are merely one participant in this industry, having been involved for ten years.
