Cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar has joined Recykal as a strategic investor. Recykal is a Hyderabad-based technology company that works on waste management and the circular economy. The company announced the news on 12 November 2026. Tendulkar’s investment extends the USD 23 million bridge round that Recykal closed in June this year.
Why Sachin Tendulkar backed Recykal
Recykal believes that India’s waste challenge is, at its core, about behaviour. In other words, it wants people to see waste as a resource rather than something to throw away. Waste can be recovered, returned and given a second life. As a strategic investor, Tendulkar will help champion that message. According to Recykal, the aim is to take the spirit of Swachh Bharat into its next chapter.
“Throughout my career, I’ve learnt that lasting success is built on discipline and consistent efforts, however big or small,” says Tendulkar. “The same is true for building a cleaner India.”
He adds that the company’s use of technology first caught his attention. “What drew me to Recykal was seeing how technology was being used to solve an everyday problem,” he says. “I hope together we can encourage more people to make responsible choices every day.”
“The same is true for building a cleaner India.”Sachin Tendulkar, strategic investor, Recykal
What Recykal does
Recykal started in 2015. Today, it builds digital platforms for waste management and for trading recyclable materials. It also runs Deposit Return Systems, which give people a small deposit back when they return used packaging such as bottles. In addition, the company makes AI-enabled reverse vending machines in India.
According to the company, it has channelled more than 30 lakh tonnes of waste so far. It works with around 650 brands, including Hindustan Unilever, Samsung and BMW. It also works with more than 5,000 aggregators and recyclers.
Abhay Deshpande, CEO and Co-Founder of Recykal, sees the circular economy as a technology problem first. “Deposit Return Systems are perhaps the clearest expression of this thesis,” he says. “To have Sachin join us as a strategic investor is incredibly meaningful.”
Where the funding is going
Existing investors and select new family offices put money into the June round. Recykal says it is using the funds for three things. First, it will strengthen its technology platform and Open Marketplace. Next, it will scale its Deposit Return System. Finally, it will support the company’s international expansion.
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Image courtesy of Recykal.
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