A first-generation diamantaire Yoram Dvash, currently serving as the Acting President at World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) and the President of the Israel Diamond Exchange (IDE), launched his diamond manufacturing and trading business, Yoram Dvash Diamonds Ltd., in 1991.
Yoram Dvash has been a member of Israel Diamond Manufacturers Association (IsDMA) since the beginning of the century and an IsDMA board member since 2011. He also served a term on the board of the Israel Diamond Institute. In 2013 elections, Yoram was chosen as the IDE’s honorary secretary, Chairman of the Industry Committee and Chairman of the Marketing and External Relations Committee. Yoram first joined the board of directors of the Israel Diamond Exchange in 2013.
In the 2015 elections, Yoram was elected as President of the Israel Diamond Exchange. In 2016, five months after being elected as Israeli Diamond Exchange President, Yoram was elected as Vice President of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB).
Here, in an interview with Rough & Polished, Yoram Dvash expresses his confidence in WFDB’s ‘Get Diamonds’ platform that has been designed to bring transparency; and also be ideal to connect traders across the globe.
Some excerpts:
Can you tell us more about the World Federation of Diamond Bourse’s (WFDB) diamond trading platform “Get Diamonds”?
The coronavirus pandemic has caused a huge crisis in the global economy, but the World Federation of Diamond Bourses, a body that incorporates 29 diamond exchanges, has decided to turn the crisis into an opportunity and to introduce significant changes into the way business has traditionally been done.
The halt in trade, exhibitions and international flights has led to the realization that online commerce is a major force that is here to stay. Customers have cut back on store visits and have largely moved online. With this in mind, the WFDB decided to acquire online diamond trading platform “Get Diamonds”.
Huge efforts were invested in this platform to make it convenient and user-friendly, easily accessible and transparent. Moreover, it is not a privately-owned venture but a non-profit company owned by the WFDB. Get Diamonds is truly “By the industry, For the industry.”
Traders across countries are interested to know more about ‘Get Diamonds’ working procedure etc. Also, how it will counterpoise to RapNet or even any other trading platforms? Your comments, please?
In a very short space of five weeks, Get Diamonds has captured the market and established itself as the world’s largest diamond trading platform, with over 1.2 million diamonds listed, valued over $ 5.5 billion, with over 3,200 traders and more than 25,000 buyers worldwide. This proves to us how important full transparency is to the diamond trade. Currently, the platform is free to use and will be offered at very affordable prices.
How do you think ‘Get Diamonds’ will benefit the global diamond traders on the whole?
I think that a major factor in its success is that it is so different from what was available before. This platform is not privately owned and influenced by various interests that are not-transparent.
It is a platform created by and for the diamond industry, and its purpose is to provide the transparency it brings with it. It is an ideal platform for connecting buyers and sellers from around the world professionally and objectively.
How is the Chinese version of the ‘Get Diamonds’ site launched by WFDB recently faring now? Traders are eager to know about the Russian and Arabic versions as well. How soon will they be launched?
After we launched the English, Hebrew and Chinese versions, the Russian and Hindi language versions are also available. The Arabic language will soon be added as well.
Once there is a demand for language or interest from some countries, we will do everything to make the platform convenient and provide a user-friendly interface.
We see the future generation as a very big hope for our industry, so we decided to invest resources and create a new website that will serve as a hub for young diamantaires around the world. It took quite a while to create this site that would suit the young members of the industry, and allow them to reach out to creative collaborations to improve their business operations. At the end of the day, they are the future of the industry, and we are pleased to see that over 300 young diamantaires around the world have joined the Young Diamantaire site.
I invite anyone who has not yet joined to register for the site.
Wrapping up, how do you think the global diamond industry would be impacted by COVID19 crisis? The negative effect is now being felt right from the ‘Mines down to the retailers’. Please give us an outlook for the post-COVID-19 period. Is there a light at the end of the tunnel?
We may be nearing the end of the coronavirus wave. Governments have already begun to open the economy, and companies and businesses are slowly starting to return to work. I predict that within a few months, the wheels of trade and industry will return at a brisk pace.
We hope that we will restore the global diamond industry to growth and prosperity for the benefit of all diamantaires in the world. We also hope that we have been able to make a significant change by encouraging the transition to trade that is more digital and less physical. No wonder senior diamond industry executives such as Dr Gaetano Cavalieri, CIBJO President, Lawrence Ma, Hong Kong Diamond Federation President, and the President of the Antwerp World Diamond Center have urged the use of ‘ Get Diamonds’. The success of the platform is because its time has come – it’s time that the industry manages its trade on its own, for its benefit.
Courtesy of Rough & Polished
