Bantam Materials and the fight against ocean plastics pollution
Since 2005, Bantam Materials International has been dedicated to preventing plastic from reaching the world’s oceans and waterways and has paid for the recycling of over 10 billion bottles. A recycled materials supply business committed to sustainability, Bantam has spent over a decade working with coastal communities in developing countries by supporting bottle collectors, collection centers and local recyclers based there.
We recently sat down with UK director Raffi Schieir to learn more about how Bantam’s social entrepreneurship model led them to grow into a market leader, and how WorldFirst have been a key strategic partner helping the company ensure fundamental financial support is being driven into bottle collection communities.
How did Bantam get started?
With no major financial backing, we were motivated to show how a small group of people can have a significant impact in the ocean plastic space by creating a sustainable solution. Since starting out we have managed to pay for the recycling of over a billion bottles in a calendar year, and have continued to hit that milestone every year since. We take immense pride in the care and quality that goes into achieving these levels year on year, and are proud to have won the Sustainable Initiative of The Year award in 2020 at the Retail Industry Awards, as well the Business Intelligence Group’s Sustainability Award for Sustainable Product of the Year for our partner ZenWTR.
Where do WorldFirst come into your story?
As Bantam grew, we quickly identified a fundamental issue regarding sending large amounts of money to countries that typically lack a strong banking infrastructure. The speed and reliability of these payments is critical, especially with credit interest rates as high as 72% in some communities. By utilising WorldFirst, we’re able to facilitate a large volume of commerce and trade into developing countries at excellent rates, so that we can reliably provide the cashflow needed to pay the bottle collector communities we work with. Through WorldFirst, we send more than $100,000 USD a day to these communities; this allows for a huge amount of work to be carried out, contributing to the ultimate goal of reducing the amount of plastic that enters the ocean. By using the WorldFirst International Payments Account we’re able to pay our suppliers as well as the bottle communities we work with easily and at speed, at a competitive transfer rate.
- Open 15+ local currency accounts and get paid like a local
- Pay suppliers, partners and staff worldwide in 100+ currencies
- Collect payments for free from 130+ marketplaces and payment gateways, including Amazon, Etsy, PayPal and Shopify
- Take control of spending with the World Card, a business expense card that saves you more with 1% cashback. Learn more
- Save with competitive exchange rates on currency conversions and transfers
- Lock in exchange rates for up to 24 months for cash flow certainty
Other than currency transfers, what other WorldFirst services do you use?
As a business that supplies to manufacturing companies we have to evaluate currency risk all the time. The main currency pairs we work with are USD, EUR and GBP, (although we do go outside of these currencies from time to time). Currency volatility is therefore a main driver as we sell for single digit markets, meaning we need an effective strategy in place – this is where WorldFirst play an integral part.
WorldFirst have helped us implement a robust risk management strategy that helps us secure supply chains with the funds we need, whilst ensuring our business remains profitable. One-third of our international business transfers are facilitated by forward contracts from WorldFirst, and another third are spot contracts. During the recent period of elevated risk due to Covid and Brexit, WorldFirst have been a key partner in helping us navigate these challenges by mitigating currency volatility and reducing our downside risk exposure.
How would you sum up your relationship with WorldFirst?
We have worked with WorldFirst for ten years because of payment integrity, and more than 80% of our international business transfers are executed by them. Without a reliable partner such as WorldFirst, we wouldn’t be able to carry out our currency transfers in a way which would allow us to be able to look factories and collection centers in the eye and wholeheartedly guarantee we can be there for them to receive payments when they need them.
It’s this reputation of quality and integrity that allows us to maintain strong relationships with both our suppliers and the communities we work with. When someone collects bottles from an at-risk coastline it’s really important that the collector receives a fair and clear price and is paid on time. By using WorldFirst’s services we feel safe knowing that our responsibility to the communities we work with is honoured as we make a significant number of advance payments to ensure our bottle collectors and suppliers are paid securely and on time.
Building a business from the ground up with Scoot Boot
Discover how Scoot Boot overcame currency challenges and scaled to 110+ countries with the right tools and support from WorldFirst.
Feb / 2025
Airshow mastery meets business innovation
With a career spanning over two decades, Paul Bennett has flown from the shipyard to the stratosphere, leading a conglomerate that covers everything from airshows to resin manufacturing and freight.
Sep / 2023
An educational toy captivating kids in over 50 countries
Launched from a garage in 2019, Connetix Tiles now boasts well over 500 retailers worldwide, with customers, suppliers and warehouses globally.
May / 2023Choose a category below for more business, finance and foreign exchange support from WorldFirst.
- Almost 1,000,000 businesses have sent USD$300B around the world with WorldFirst and its partner brands since 2004
- Your money is safeguarded with leading financial institutions
