Mastermelt Group of Companies

What Mastermelt Group of Companies does

Mastermelt Group of Companies is a privately held precious metals recycling and reclamation group headquartered at 56 Hatton Garden, London (founded 1985). It recovers gold, silver, platinum, palladium, rhodium, iridium and ruthenium from industrial and jewellery waste streams, returning metal to customers' value chains or settling in cash based on London Metal Market pricing minus refining charges. The group operates multiple wholly-owned subsidiaries and a Singapore joint venture (ECO-Mastermelt) from sites in the UK (Hatton Garden headquarters, Buxton refinery, Stevenage Technical Centre, Wilton Homcat centre), Germany (Aschaffenburg), Singapore (Tuas) and the UAE (Dubai, commenced 01 January 2026).

The underlying technology is predominantly chemical and metallurgical: pyro-metallurgical and hydrometallurgical processing, including proprietary functionalised metal scavenger systems for homogeneous catalysts, distillation and ion-exchange separation of PGMs, and non-destructive chemical recovery methods that preserve base superalloys in aerospace engine components. The UKAS ISO/IEC 17025-accredited Mastermelt Technical Centre in Stevenage functions as an in-house R&D laboratory, supporting both process development and customer assays. Service packaging includes Transfrontier Shipment Notification (TFS) regulatory management, on-site process audits, and metal leasing for customers that prefer not to hold physical stock.

The business model is fee- and margin-based. Refining and reclamation settlements are priced on London Metal Market values (LBMA/LME) minus agreed refining terms; jewellery scrap at the Presman trade counter is settled same-day at the morning fix; and ancillary services include TFS regulatory support, on-site process audits, and the Presman Scrap mobile app. Customers are segmented into pharmaceutical and fine chemicals, green hydrogen and clean energy, jewellery, petroleum and petrochemical, advanced manufacturing (aerospace, medical, glass) and electroplating. Sales is field-led with vertical- and geography-aligned account managers covering the UK, Germany, France/Italy/Switzerland, Spain and the Middle East/Africa.

Name

Mastermelt Group of Companies

Legal name

Mastermelt Ltd

Website

https://mastermeltgroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Mastermelt Group is a London-headquartered precious metals recycler that recovers gold, silver and PGMs from industrial catalyst waste and jewellery scrap, serving pharmaceutical, green-hydrogen, jewellery, petrochemical, aerospace and electroplating customers from facilities in the UK, Germany, Singapore and the UAE.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Precious Metal Recycling and Refining Services

NAICS

Secondary Smelting, Refining, and Alloying of Nonferrous Metal (except Copper and Aluminum) (331492)

SIC

Secondary Smelting & Refining Of Nonferrous Metals (3341)

akta.pro primary industry

Precious & Specialty Metal Recovery (Smelting, Refining, Hydrometallurgy) (EUAIAIAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Metals Recycling & Processing (Ferrous/Non-Ferrous) (BPALADAF), Metal Melting & Secondary Smelting/Refining (Recycled Feedstock Producers) (EUAIAJAJ), Hazardous Waste Recycling & Recovery (Solvent Recovery, Oil Re-refining, Metals Recovery) (EUAIAFAI)

Keywords

• Precious metal recycling
• Metal refining services
• Catalyst recovery solutions
• Jewellery scrap processing
• Platinum group metals

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Supply Chain, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Precious Metal Refining and Reclamation Services: Mastermelt processes customers' precious metal-containing waste streams (catalysts, jewellery scrap, manufacturing residues) and recovers the precious metals. The recovered metal is either returned to the customer's value chain (metal credited to account for fresh catalyst manufacture) or priced on the London Metal Market and settled in cash. Customers receive a full report and payment based on recovered metal content.
2. Jewellery Scrap Purchase and Settlement: Presman trade counter in Hatton Garden purchases gold, platinum, and palladium scrap directly from jewellery trade customers. Same-day payments via bank transfer, cash, or cheque. Pricing based on morning's London Metal Market fix. A fast melt and assay service is offered for mixed scrap and bench lemel.
3. Metal Lease Rates / Financing: Mastermelt offers precious metal leasing to companies that do not want to maintain their own stock of precious metal. This brings flexibility and control to cash flow, free up capital for investment elsewhere, and avoids owning unused assets at a fixed price.
4. Technical Consulting and Process Audit Services: Technical Sales Managers offer on-site process audits to identify waste streams and opportunities for precious metal recovery. The company also provides TFS regulatory support as part of its service offering.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Mastermelt Group of Companies recovers and refines precious metals including gold, silver, platinum, palladium, rhodium, iridium, and ruthenium from industrial waste streams (spent catalysts, manufacturing residues) and jewellery scrap. The company uses pyro-metallurgical and hydrometallurgical processing at facilities in the UK, Germany, Singapore, and UAE, and returns recovered metal to customers via account credit or cash settlement at London Metal Market prices. Specialized services cover pharmaceutical catalyst recovery, green hydrogen/electrolyser reclamation, and non-destructive aerospace component processing.

Product overview

Mastermelt Group of Companies operates as a leading global precious metal recycling company offering a comprehensive portfolio of services built around its core metal reclamation and refining capabilities. The core offering is Mastermelt Metal Reclamation Services, supported by specialized processing centres including the Homcat Recycling Centre of Excellence and Mastermelt Technical Centre. The company provides sector-specific recovery services for pharmaceutical, chemical, green energy, electroplating, petroleum, jewellery, and advanced manufacturing industries. Supporting tools include the PEM-PGM Calculator and Homogeneous Catalyst Value Calculator for material valuation, alongside the Presman Scrap App for jewellery trade customers. TFS Support Services handles regulatory compliance for hazardous material transport. The portfolio also includes metal leasing options and operates across UK, Germany, Singapore, and UAE facilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mastermelt Metal Reclamation Services Core precious metal recovery and recycling services including thermal pre-treatment, chemical dissolution, and metallurgical processing for reclaiming gold, silver, platinum, palladium, rhodium, iridium, and ruthenium from industrial waste streams. Service is offered to industrial customers across pharmaceutical, chemical, green hydrogen, jewellery, electroplating, petroleum, and advanced manufacturing sectors.
• Presman Scrap Services Trade-only jewellery scrap buying service operating from Hatton Garden, London. Offers same-day payments for gold, platinum, and palladium scrap, free-post envelope service, and melt and assay services for the UK jewellery trade including retailers, manufacturers, and bespoke jewellers.
• Pharmaceutical Catalyst Recovery Specialised recovery services for spent pharmaceutical catalysts including heterogeneous (Pd on Carbon, Pd on Silica) and homogeneous catalyst systems (Pd Organometallics, Rh Organometallics) with metal scavenger recovery systems. Targets pharmaceutical API manufacturers and fine chemical companies using precious metal catalysts.
• Green Hydrogen Metal Recovery

Quantifiable outcome

• Top 1% globally for sustainability — EcoVadis Platinum rating (88/100 overall, 91/100 in Environment)
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Asahi KaseicoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 April 2025Mastermelt joined Asahi Kasei, Nobian, and Furuya Metal in a joint project (started February 2025) to recycle precious metals (iridium and ruthenium) from electrolyzer components used in chlor-alkali industry applications. The project aims to create a recycling ecosystem for valuable PGM metals used in electrolyzer electrodes and cells — a major milestone towards circularity in the chlor-alkali industry.
• NobiancoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 April 2025Partnership with Asahi Kasei, Furuya Metal, and Mastermelt in joint electrolyzer metal recycling project (started February 2025). Nobian contributes chlor-alkali industry expertise and electrolyzer operations as part of the circular economy initiative for platinum group metals.
• Furuya MetalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 April 2025Partnership with Asahi Kasei, Nobian, and Mastermelt in joint electrolyzer metal recycling project (started February 2025). Furuya Metal contributes electrolyzer component expertise and PGM recycling capabilities as part of the circular economy initiative.
• Hensel RecyclingcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 September 2024Hensel Recycling and Mastermelt announced a collaboration to provide comprehensive precious metal recycling services to the green hydrogen and fuel cell industry. The partnership combines Hensel's expertise in supply chain logistics and container management with Mastermelt's technical capabilities in PGM recovery from fuel cells and electrolysers. Jointly exhibited at Hydrogen Expo Europe to promote the partnership.
• ECO Special Waste ManagementcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerECO-Mastermelt Pte Ltd is a joint venture between ECO Special Waste Management and Mastermelt Group, providing precious metal recovery services to Asia. The Singapore-based plant (Tuas View Circuit) has a large thermal pretreatment, chemical and melting process and is approved by Singapore's NEA. Plant 2 opened in 2025 marking 10 years of operation.
• Amlon GroupminorOthersAmlon Group, based in Plano, Texas and backed by Heartwood Partners, acquired Mastermelt America LLC (operating a specialised industrial waste processing facility in Sweetwater, Tennessee) in May 2025. The acquisition brings Amlon thermal processing and chemical dissolution capabilities for spent catalysts, electronic components, and aerospace materials, strengthening its southeastern US footprint. This is separate from the Mastermelt Group of Companies which operates in UK, Germany, Singapore and UAE.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Heraeus Precious Metals: Heraeus is a German-based global precious metals and technology group operating one of the world's largest precious metals refineries, providing PGM recycling, catalyst recovery, and trading — directly comparable to Mastermelt's pharmaceutical/chemical and PGM refining offerings. Mastermelt's Eleonora Rubini is ex-Heraeus, evidencing the direct talent overlap.
• Johnson Matthey: Johnson Matthey is a UK-based chemicals and precious metals group with a long-standing PGM refining and catalyst recovery business serving pharmaceutical, chemical and hydrogen customers. Multiple Mastermelt senior leaders (Steve Gaylor, Adam Sullivan, Gabriele Aksomaityte) are Johnson Matthey alumni, and JM remains the dominant Western PGM refiner.
• Umicore: Umicore is a Belgian global materials technology group with a major precious metals refining division that recovers PGMs from automotive catalysts, industrial waste and jewellery, and operates LBMA-approved refinery status. Competes directly with Mastermelt for industrial PGM recovery volumes across Europe.
• Dowa Holdings: Dowa Holdings is a Japanese environmental and metals group with significant precious metals and PGM recycling operations, including electronic scrap recovery — competes broadly with Mastermelt's electronics, jewellery and industrial PGM recovery service lines across Asia.
• Materion Corporation: Materion is a US-based advanced materials group that produces and recycles precious metals including gold, silver, platinum and palladium — a North American competitor for industrial recovery and a customer-side alternative to shipping waste to UK/EU refiners like Mastermelt.

Direct peers

• Sabin Metal Corp: Sabin Metal Corp is a US-based (New York) precious metals refiner specialising in spent catalyst recovery, PGM refining and industrial reclamation — providing a direct North American alternative to Mastermelt's now-divested American operation and the immediate competitor for cross-border catalyst shipments.
• Hensel Recycling: Hensel Recycling is a German precious metals recycler with strong container/logistics capabilities that has a formal strategic partnership (Sep 2024) with Mastermelt to serve green hydrogen and fuel cell PGM recovery — directly comparable refining capability with complementary logistics focus.
• Furuya Metal: Furuya Metal is a Japanese precious metals refiner and PGM recycler participating with Mastermelt in the Asahi Kasei/Nobian chlor-alkali electrolyser recycling project — directly comparable PGM refining capability serving the same electrolyser and PGM recovery markets.

Emerging players

• Amlon Group: Amlon Group is a US hazardous waste treatment specialist backed by Heartwood Partners which acquired Mastermelt America LLC in May 2025 — now a direct competitor in thermal processing of spent catalysts, electronic components and aerospace materials in the southeastern US.

Regional players

• Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo: Tanaka Kikinzoku is a Japanese precious metals refiner and fabricator offering LBMA-accredited refining for gold, silver, platinum and palladium, primarily serving Asian industrial and electronics customers — provides a regional alternative to Mastermelt's ECO-Mastermelt Singapore operation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mastermelt-group-of-companies
• Instagraminstagram.com/presman_mastermelt
• Xx.com/MastermeltGroup
• Facebookfacebook.com/MastermeltAmerica

Compliance9 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Mastermelt Group of Companies