Idex Online - International Diamond Exchange
IDEX Online is the world's only fully automated, wholesale, online trading service for diamond industry professionals. IDEX Online offers the largest online wholesale inventory of polished diamonds from over 1,000 suppliers worldwide, accessed by more than 6000 subscribed users, all professional traders.
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What is the goal of IDEX?
IDEX Online provides the only B2B spot-market trading platform for polished diamonds, guaranteeing availability and delivery of authenticated diamonds to buyers, and immediate cash payment to sellers. IDEX Online offers the largest online wholesale inventory from over 1,000 suppliers worldwide, accessed by more than 6000 subscribed users, all professional traders. This successful establishment of a spot market provides the key for unlocking successive growth opportunities in the form of financial derivatives, financial information products and value-added services, similar to those offered for other commodities.
When IDEX was founded, who founded it and what was the initial idea behind it?
IDEX Online was founded in the year 2000 by Chairman Mr. Ehud David Cohen, and COO Ms. Tamar Katzav, who both were in the field of polished diamond trading, and in 1999 realized, during an internet research project, that a real online exchange for polished diamonds did not exist. Indeed there were a couple of platforms claiming to be such exchanges, however, a closer look immediately revealed that in fact, such platforms were either biased, in the sense that they themselves actually traded diamonds, or that such platforms were created by outsiders of the industry, thus lacked the ‘diamond lingo’, which was needed to gain the traders trust and to bring them online. The lack of such an online platform immediately spelled opportunity, and thus IDEX Online was planned, developed and launched in February 2001.
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Who can become an IDEX member? What kind of companies are already members of IDEX?
IDEX Online is a B2B trading platform – thus – it is accessible to industry members – from the entire diamond and jewelry pipeline. Members of IDEX Online consist of mining companies, diamond manufacturers, diamond and jewelry wholesalers, jewelry manufacturers, retailers, banks and financial institutes, analysts, industry organizations, governments and more.
What is the role of IDEX in the diamond market?
Polished diamonds are one of the last commodities on earth without a spot market.
A Spot Market: “A market in which commodities, such as grain, gold, crude oil, or RAM chips, are bought and sold for cash and delivered immediately. Also called Cash Market.”
The role of a spot market for any traded goods is to provide sellers and buyers with a centralized market place where they can get objective pricing information, effectively reach the broadest audiences and execute spot transactions. Spot markets play a key role in bringing efficiencies to trading and to the markets they serve. Spot markets generate the transaction information that is required for the introduction of price-indices, therefore making the overall trade more efficient and laying the groundwork for future derivative trading and financial services.
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What is the current situation in the diamond market and how is the world economic crisis affecting it?
The diamond market, like all other economic fields, was negatively affected by the current crisis. Most notably, diamond jewelry sales in the 2008 November-December holiday season period declined compared to 2007, as consumers purchased less items (across the board) and spent less money. This was especially true for luxury items.
As a result, demand declined all the way up the diamond pipeline: retailers bought less finished items, jewelry makers buy less loose diamonds, diamond polishers buy less rough diamonds and miners - such as De Beers and Alrosa - have cutback on diamond mining. Another outcome is a decline in prices - anywhere between 15% -75% since October (depending on the type and quality of the goods), however, it is important to note that for the most part polished diamond prices are holding relatively stable in comparison with prices of other commodities.
Are people investing in diamonds amid the current economic situation?
There are a couple of diamond funds and a few private investors. The funds raise money from investors and buy high-end diamonds with the money. This existed in the past and failed and in the past year a couple of new attempts sprung - thou they started operating before the recent collapse started. Funds and private investors continue to buy goods, however at a much lesser degree than before.
Geographically speaking, how is the diamond world divided?
Mining takes place in Africa, Australia, north Canada and Siberia (Russia’s Sakha republic). Antwerp is the main rough trading center, India and China are the main manufacturing centers and Israel is the main polished trading center (by value. By volume India leads). The US is the largest consumer market.
Do you have any special objectives regarding the current economic situation?
Since we are a service provider, we help our members find the goods they need, provide them with our Guaranteed Diamond Transactions™ platform that protects them from not getting the goods (if they are buyers) or their money (if they are sellers). We also provide the industry with trend analysis and economic insights that help them navigate the rough waters we are in right now.
There are currently many unique opportunities for us and the diamond industry at large and we are actively perusing them.
More: www.idexonline.com
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