SMX and TruCotton Collaborate to Deliver a New Standard for Cotton Fiber Traceability

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK / ACCESS Newswire / January 26, 2026 /Markets price proof. They always do, especially in global supply chains where claims have historically traveled faster than verification. That transition rarely announces itself in real time. It shows up first in procurement standards, then in compliance language, and finally in capital allocation decisions.

Today, tariffs, geopolitical uncertainty, and fragmented supply chains have introduced both sovereign risk and the potential for brand provenance destruction. In that environment, materials that cannot defend their origin or integrity begin to carry friction. The competitive consequence is straightforward. Those who can prove what they are and where they came from gain leverage quietly, while others absorb cost, delay, and skepticism.

Cotton is now entering that phase. Much like precious metals, commodities, and other agricultural markets before it, verification is no longer about branding. It is about managing exposure under scrutiny. That reality does more than contextualize the announced collaboration between SMX (NASDAQ:SMX) and TruCotton^™. It explains why the development matters beyond a single supply agreement.

Why TruCotton^™ Signals Real Adoption

TruCotton^™ is a century-old, independent U.S. cotton producer with long-standing relationships across growers, processors, and buyers who value consistency and provenance. Its business was built on execution rather than narrative, which makes it a meaningful participant as verification expectations rise.

That independence matters. TruCotton^™ is not an SMX-owned platform, nor is it part of a captive ecosystem. It is an established operator choosing to integrate verification infrastructure because the economics are shifting. As scrutiny increases, uncertainty becomes costly, and provable origin becomes a competitive advantage rather than a compliance exercise.

For SMX, this type of partner reflects how adoption scales. Verification does not become infrastructure through pilots alone. It becomes infrastructure when real producers with real volume decide that proof is no longer optional. Here 's why that shift is underway.

Cotton and the Hidden Cost of Ambiguity

Cotton supply chains are especially vulnerable to misrepresentation once the fiber leaves the farm. Country-of-origin claims blur quickly. Certifications rely heavily on documentation that becomes harder to enforce downstream. By the time cotton is spun, blended, or finished, physical differentiation disappears.

That ambiguity has historically been absorbed as operational noise. Today, it is turning into exposure. Regulatory pressure, brand accountability, and buyer due diligence are converging, and gaps that once went unnoticed are now being tested. What was once a documentation problem is becoming a material risk issue.

This is the problem SMX was designed to address.

Verification That Travels With the Material

SMX embeds a secure molecular marker directly into raw materials, creating a persistent digital identity that remains linked to the physical cotton throughout its lifecycle. This is not a label or a tag that can be removed or swapped. It is a physical-digital bond that travels with the material itself.

For TruCotton^™, this extends provenance beyond the farm gate. The cotton remains verifiably TruCotton^™ after processing, blending, and manufacturing. Origin can be authenticated. Chain of custody can be validated. Claims can be proven without relying on trust or manual audits.

For brands and buyers, this capability is becoming essential. As disclosure requirements tighten and enforcement shifts from voluntary reporting to auditable proof, verification at the material level moves from advantage to necessity.

Infrastructure Without Ownership Risk

From an investor 's perspective, the structure of this collaboration is as important as the technology.

SMX already operates proprietary verification platforms across other material categories. TruCotton^™ sits outside that framework by design. Its independence reinforces credibility and demonstrates that SMX 's verification layer is portable rather than confined to owned platforms.

This model scales without asset intensity. It compounds value through adoption rather than consolidation and creates optionality across industries facing similar verification challenges. TruCotton^™ 's participation validates that strategy in one of the most scrutinized natural material markets globally.

The broader implication is straightforward. Materials that can prove what they are, where they came from, and how they moved will command trust and access. Materials that cannot will face skepticism, friction, or exclusion.

In supply chains like these, durability beats noise, and proof becomes currency long before it becomes policy.

About SMX

As global businesses face new and complex challenges relating to carbon neutrality and meeting new governmental and regional regulations and standards, SMX is able to offer players along the value chain access to its marking, tracking, measuring and digital platform technology to transition more successfully to a low-carbon economy.

Forward-Looking Statements

The information in this press release includes "forward-looking statements " within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future. In addition, any statements that refer to projections, forecasts or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. The words "anticipate, " "believe, " "contemplate, " "continue, " "could, " "estimate, " "expect, " "forecast, " "intends, " "may, " "will, " "might, " "plan, " "possible, " "potential, " "predict, " "project, " "should, " "would " and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements in this press release may include, for example: matters relating to the Company 's fight against abusive and possibly illegal trading tactics against the Company 's stock; successful launch and implementation of SMX 's joint projects with manufacturers and other supply chain participants of steel, rubber and other materials; changes in SMX 's strategy, future operations, financial position, estimated revenues and losses, projected costs, prospects and plans; SMX 's ability to develop and launch new products and services, including its planned Plastic Cycle Token; SMX 's ability to successfully and efficiently integrate future expansion plans and opportunities; SMX 's ability to grow its business in a cost-effective manner; SMX 's product development timeline and estimated research and development costs; the implementation, market acceptance and success of SMX 's business model; developments and projections relating to SMX 's competitors and industry; and SMX 's approach and goals with respect to technology. These forward-looking statements are based on information available as of the date of this press release, and current expectations, forecasts and assumptions, and involve a number of judgments, risks and uncertainties. Accordingly, forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing views as of any subsequent date, and no obligation is undertaken to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date they were made, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws. As a result of a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties, actual results or performance may be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Some factors that could cause actual results to differ include: the ability to maintain the listing of the Company 's shares on Nasdaq; changes in applicable laws or regulations; any lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on SMX 's business; the ability to implement business plans, forecasts, and other expectations, and identify and realize additional opportunities; the risk of downturns and the possibility of rapid change in the highly competitive industry in which SMX operates; the risk that SMX and its current and future collaborators are unable to successfully develop and commercialize SMX 's products or services, or experience significant delays in doing so; the risk that the Company may never achieve or sustain profitability; the risk that the Company will need to raise additional capital to execute its business plan, which may not be available on acceptable terms or at all; the risk that the Company experiences difficulties in managing its growth and expanding operations; the risk that third-party suppliers and manufacturers are not able to fully and timely meet their obligations; the risk that SMX is unable to secure or protect its intellectual property; the possibility that SMX may be adversely affected by other economic, business, and/or competitive factors; and other risks and uncertainties described in SMX 's filings from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

SMX GENERAL ENQUIRIES

Email: info@securitymattersltd.com

SOURCE:SMX (Security Matters) Public Limited

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