2 Aug 2017
by JNA
The De Beers Group of Companies is establishing De Beers Ventures to actively consider the acquisition of minority equity stakes in start-ups and growth companies.
The new initiative will consider small investments in areas that may include downstream distribution, consumer brands, marketing platforms, security, cutting and polishing, and imaging technologies. The objectives of the investments will be to generate returns that are both strategic and financial.
Tom Montgomery, senior vice president of Strategic Initiatives at De Beers Group, said: “Not all good ideas can be generated or executed by a large corporation. We believe that harnessing the energy of entrepreneurs to pursue strategic opportunities that benefit De Beers and the diamond industry can be a cost-effective, risk-reduced way to pursue innovation.”
In another development, De Beers said demand for rough diamonds continued to strengthen, thanks to positive trends in the global market.
Citing the latest data from its Global Sightholder Sales and Auction Sales, the group revealed that the provisional value of its rough diamond sales for the 5th sales cycle of 2017 reached $530 million.
Bruce Cleaver, CEO of De Beers Group, commented, “Following positive feedback from the Las Vegas trade show, and in line with recent trends, we saw continued good demand for De Beers rough diamonds in the fifth sales cycle of the year.”
The group’s rough diamond sales hit $564 million during the same period in 2016. The Cycle 5 2017 provisional sales value represented sales as at June 19, 2017.
Sales values are quoted on a consolidated accounting basis and are before capitalisation of pre-commercial production revenues at Gahcho Kué. Auction Sales included in a given cycle are the sum of all sales between the end of the preceding cycle and the end of the noted cycle, added De Beers.
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