De Beers has appointed Molefi Letsiki, owner of Molefi Letsiki Diamonds in Johannesburg, South Africa, as a Sightholder, making Letsiki de Beers’ first majority black-owned Sightholder.
According to IDEX Online, Molefi Letsiki Diamonds was founded in 2005 “as a custom-made jewelry manufacturing business.” The company will be among about 60 businesses authorized to attend ten Sights a year in Gaborone, Botswana, from January 1, 2023, to purchase De Beers’ rough diamonds.
Letsiki is a second-generation diamantaire who graduated from the De Beers Enterprise Development Project for Diamond Beneficiation. The initiative was designed specifically to help “‘historically disadvantaged South Africans” develop sustainable business and qualify for sightholder status.
De Beers Group operations managing director Moses Madondo said: “On behalf of De Beers, I wish to congratulate Molefi on this momentous achievement. It was our ultimate goal when we launched the Enterprise Development Project to have the project members become our sightholders.”
