NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESS Newswire / March 25, 2026 / SMX (Security Matters) PLC (NASDAQ: SMX) has created a new economic framework for plastics by combining molecular marking with blockchain infrastructure-positioning recycled plastic as a cost advantage in a market increasingly shaped by energy volatility. As oil and gas prices continue to drive uncertainty in the cost of virgin plastic, SMX enables companies to shift toward verified, traceable recycled materials with a more stable and efficient cost profile.

Plastic remains fundamentally tied to energy markets. When oil and gas prices move, the cost of producing virgin plastic follows-impacting packaging, apparel, and a wide range of consumer goods. In today's geopolitical environment, that linkage is becoming more pronounced, introducing sustained volatility into material costs across global supply chains.

SMX introduces a different system.

By embedding a permanent, invisible molecular marker into plastic, SMX links each material to a secure digital record that captures origin, composition, and lifecycle data. This information travels with the material itself, allowing it to be verified instantly-without reliance on paperwork, third-party claims, or fragmented tracking systems.

This transforms plastic into a verifiable data asset.

Once recorded within SMX's blockchain-enabled infrastructure, each unit of recycled plastic becomes part of a structured digital system, where lifecycle events-production, recovery, and reuse-are captured and authenticated. This forms the basis of the Plastic Cycle Token, a digital representation of real-world recycling activity grounded in measured, verifiable material flows.

This shift directly addresses one of the biggest inefficiencies in the plastics market.

Historically, recycled plastic has carried a premium due to inconsistent quality, contamination risk, and costly verification processes. By embedding proof into the material and digitizing its lifecycle, SMX removes key sources of friction-enabling faster procurement, clearer attribution, and more consistent material performance.

The result is a more efficient cost structure:

• Verification becomes immediate and system-based

• Material quality is attributable and auditable

• Supply chain uncertainty is significantly reduced

As these inefficiencies are eliminated, recycled plastic moves closer to cost alignment with virgin material-and in certain market conditions, becomes increasingly competitive as energy-driven costs continue to impact traditional production.

At the same time, SMX introduces a new layer of economic value.

Through the Plastic Cycle Token framework, verified recycled plastic can be digitized into a structured asset linked directly to physical material performance. This creates a system where recycling activity is not only operationally efficient, but also measurable and economically recognized.

The model operates on two levels:

• A more efficient, verifiable material system that reduces cost friction

• A digital value layer tied to authenticated recycling activity

For manufacturers and brands navigating volatile input costs, this represents a meaningful shift. Reducing dependence on virgin plastic-exposed to energy price swings-while increasing reliance on verified recycled inputs introduces greater control, predictability, and efficiency into procurement strategies.

SMX is building the infrastructure to support that transition.

By embedding proof into materials and connecting them to a digital system of record, SMX is enabling plastics to be tracked, verified, and valued in entirely new ways.

And in doing so, it is reshaping the economics of one of the world's most essential materials.

Contact: Billy White / billywhitepr@gmail.com

SOURCE: SMX (Security Matters) Public Limited