Sir Richard Branson launches DIAMDAX
ANTWERP, May 2012 – Businessman Sir Richard Branson launched DIAMDAX, the Diamond Dealers Automated Exchange, on May 6. This global online exchange for polished diamonds is the first to offer continuous, electronic auctions for buyers and sellers to trade individual polished diamond categories, based on real time, tradable spot prices.
Through this online diamond exchange, diamond traders and jewelers from all over the world will be able to buy and sell polished diamonds, online, in just a few clicks. Stones can be uploaded on the website, where interested parties will be able to buy or make a bid. The buying and selling of diamonds will be processed fully automatically online.
The mission of DIAMDAX is to deliver an innovative solution that will facilitate the trade and investment in diamonds using technology, in a global marketplace.
DIAMDAX™ is the result of a joint venture between DODAQ and the AWDC, the coordinating body and official representative of the Antwerp diamond sector.
Nishit Parikh, President of the AWDC said: “DIAMDAX will truly revolutionize the way diamond trading is done and transform it into a modern, efficient and high-performance business. For Antwerp, setting up this first, global trading exchange is a crucial element in tackling the increased competition and consolidating its market share.”
Ari Epstein, CEO of AWDC, said: “DIAMDAX™ is one of the projects we announced in Antwerp’s Diamond Masterplan, which aims to modernize the diamond industry and make it more transparent. The electronic diamond exchange will revolutionize the way polished diamonds are traded globally, resulting in a unified, Diamond Spot Price. The main benefit of the ‘Diamond Spot Price’ is greater transparency within the industry, which will enable new financing channels for the capital intensive diamond industry. It not only proves our commitment to the Masterplan, it confirms Antwerp’s leading role in the global diamond business.”
Simon Okuniew, director of DIAMDAX, said: “We are excited to launch this revolutionary diamond exchange, enabling our clients to buy and sell diamonds smarter and faster. With the exchange’s ability to report real transaction data, the diamond industry will have a true and accurate pricing model.”
Immanuel Van Poppel, director of DIAMDAX, said: “For too long the diamond industry has been hampered by its own inefficiencies. Never before has the need for a fully independent trading platform been more apparent. The exchange provides not only actual trade price data but also offers full suite of logistical solution, from trade initiation to clearing and cash settlement.”
