Evolution of Diamond Industry

Ever since copywriter Frances Gerety coined the tagline “A diamond is forever” in 1947, the meticulously cut crystallized carbon has become such a part of our conscience that one cannot imagine one of the most important occasions of human life without thinking of this rare piece of stone. Diamonds are now an unchallenged symbol of commitment, promise of marriage, and is often the highlight of an engagement ceremony. 

The craze for diamond was insatiable in the second half of the 20th century. However, it came under scrutiny since 2000 when the Fowler Report detailed how UNITA financed its war activities with unethical mining, which led to the passing of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1295 that required diamond producing countries located in southern Africa to meet in Kimberley, SA and agree on certain terms to ensure that the diamonds produced by them did not contribute to violence.

The Kimberley Process has become an important tool to stamp out sales of “blood diamonds” sourced from conflict zones, and has left producers and retailers grappling to find a footing amid changing attitudes. Inevitably, this has also made it difficult for many suppliers and manufacturers to maintain hold over the supply chain, motivating many diamond corporations to devise systems beyond the Kimberly process to validate that the gems they dealt with were legal.

Blockchain- The New Supply Chain Technology

This movement to impose more stringent protocols for verification has made way for technological innovations like blockchain to gain traction in the field. A blockchain based supply chain brings unparalleled transparency and reliability to the entire process of transferring a rough gem from the point of extraction to the final customer. The decentralized, distributed ledger can be added on to by every authorized personnel or participant in the concerned blockchain network, and the data itself can be accessed by all. The immutability of the innovation makes it the most reliable, and unlimited, storage for information required to track registered gems in every stage of manufacture, that too in real time.

Benefits of using Blockchain Technology

The implementation of a blockchain network creates an opportunity for the tokenization of services and products as well, and has gone the extra mile to bring together consortiums of jewelers on platforms such as Diamante, that even incentivizes the participants of different players in the industry in the movement to digitize the operations of the entire sector. 

Consortiums like these run cryotocurrency exchanges, where trade in digital assets such as Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ripple, HCX, and DIAM, add liquidity and profitability to adopting blockchain.

Jewelry Consortium Based on Blockchain Technology

Jewelry consortiums and development of cryptocurrency exchange platforms are two of few voluntary steps taken by the diamond sector to raise awareness about environmental and ethical consequences, another example of it being the Code of Practices Certification by the Responsible Jewelry Council, applicable to all stakeholders of the diamond industry. Clearly, the demands and expectations of consumers has undergone a massive shift, and measures such as these could woo back the generation of hyper aware millenials.