European IT Refurbishment Leaders Merge to Scale Up Second-Hand Hardware
Leiden, Monday 5 October 2026
Flex IT and T1A have rebranded as XTENTEC, creating a €150 million circular IT powerhouse serving 13,000 European resellers to drastically reduce electronic waste.
A Unified Force for Circular Hardware
The European circular economy has reached a significant milestone with the official unification of Dutch circular IT specialist Flex IT and its Danish partner T1A under the new single brand name, XTENTEC [1][2]. Launched on 4 October 2026 [1] and formally announced on 5 October 2026 [2], the consolidated group operates from strategic hubs in Leiden, Copenhagen, and Paris [1][2]. By combining their operational strengths, the companies aim to simplify sustainable IT procurement and scale the lifecycle management of enterprise hardware across the continent [1][2][3]. This consolidation is highly relevant for Benelux venture capital and private equity investors monitoring the green tech transition, as it establishes a robust framework for managing high-volume hardware lifecycles [GPT].
Scaling Operations and Financial Backing
Financially, the newly formed XTENTEC represents a major player in the European market, generating an annual turnover of approximately €150 million [1][2][3]. The group’s ambitious growth is backed by the Eurazeo Planetary Boundaries Fund (EPBF) as the majority shareholder, alongside minority investor Dansk Vækstkapital [1][3][5]. Operationally, the merger bridges two highly complementary supply chains: Flex IT historically sells approximately 500,000 units of IT hardware annually, while T1A collects 300,000 units of used corporate equipment each year [6]. Together, the unified entity manages a massive hardware flow of 800000 units annually [6], serving an extensive European distribution network of roughly 13,000 resellers [1][2][3].
Industrial-Scale Refurbishment and Certified Security
Central to XTENTEC’s value proposition is its ability to handle the secure decommissioning and restoration of high-tech systems and corporate hardware [6]. The group operates a dedicated refurbishment factory in Poland that specialises in secure data erasure and hardware restoration for resale [6]. This is supported by T1A’s existing facilities across Denmark, Germany, Great Britain, and a logistics centre in Leiden [6]. For corporate clients, including banks and large offices, meeting strict compliance standards is non-negotiable, which has driven a growing demand for certified processes such as ISO and R2 certifications [6]. XTENTEC’s industrial scale allows it to guarantee stable, high-volume batches of up to 2,000 refurbished units with identical technical specifications and image stability [6].
Market Drivers and Future Expansion
According to XTENTEC CEO Angelo Bul, three primary macroeconomic factors are accelerating the adoption of refurbished hardware: rising prices for new equipment, longer product lifecycles, and a cultural shift where the incoming workforce accepts second-hand devices as standard [6]. To capitalise on these trends, XTENTEC will execute a gradual brand transition, keeping the Flex IT and T1A brands active in the short term to ensure continuity for clients [1][3][5]. Looking ahead, the group intends to pursue a ‘buy & build’ acquisition strategy to expand its geographic footprint and service portfolio [3][5][6]. While no major acquisitions are scheduled for the remainder of 2026, XTENTEC is actively targeting expansion opportunities in Southern and Eastern Europe for 2027 to boost its inflow of used equipment [6].