The world’s first online electronic diamond exchange has begun trading at http://www.exchange.dodaq.com
Based in Antwerp, Belgium, the diamond capital of the world, the new exchange will, according to DODAQ (Dealers Organisation for Diamond Automated Quotes), enable polished diamonds to be globally traded like other commodities.
DODAQ CEO Simon Okuniew said that the online exchange offers two-way auctions for individual categories of polished diamonds, thus creating real time spot prices and the first cash market for diamonds.
“The two-way auction mechanism provides price transparency to eliminate the mystery of diamond pricing and allows the market to decide fair value, just as markets for stocks, currencies and other commodities are determined.”
Okuniew said the exchange is open to all, both within and outside of the industry, enabling diamonds to be realised for the first time as an asset class, and an alternative investment opportunity to gold.
“It provides both a liquid entry and resale point for investors representing a revolutionary step in the evolution of the global diamond industry, bringing it up to date with 21st Century trading practices and also provides the necessary vaulting to solve the burden of physical ownership.”
All client funds are held by ABN AMRO Bank and DODAQ offers instantaneous settlement, steering the industry away from the current reliance on credit.
Okuniew said “DODAQ is a cash market”.
“For us to guarantee settlement we need to be satisfied that the diamond is real and this is achieved through certification. The system calls for the original certificate which will then be checked to verify that the certificate and diamond match. They are then sealed so that at no stage can they be handled.
“The diamonds are then sent to our specialist vault in the Freeport of Geneva which is run by our professional custodian Malca-Amit, one of the most respected security and storage operators in the world with a 21-year proven track record.”
Okuniew said recent changes in the diamond industry as well as technology advancements had prompted the establishment of the DODAQ exchange.
“In recent years certifying diamonds has become an industry standard. By standardising diamonds we are realistically able to call them a commodity and therefore trade them as such. All global markets are traded electronically so the logical next step was to create a fully automated electronic exchange for diamonds.”
DODAQ is currently offering online webinars and a simulator version of the exchange for those wanting to understand the trading platform. The company also welcomes visitors to their demonstration room at their offices in Antwerp.
