The Dubai Diamond Exchange (DDE), a subsidiary of Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC), has appointed a new board of directors composed of high-profile members of the diamond and jewellery industry.

The primary role of the DDE board is to attract new business to Dubai and to elevate further the emirate’s status as a leading participant in the international wholesale diamond trade.

“Under the leadership of the new board of directors and from its new permanent home at the Almas Tower in Jumeirah Lakes Towers, the DDE will continue to build upon its status as one of the world’s top five rough diamond distributors and as a vital participant in the wider diamond trade,” said Ahmed Bin Sulayem, executive chairman, DMCC.

Newly appointed members of the DDE board include leading international diamond wholesalers Dilip Mehta, CEO of Rosy Blue, who has been accredited with transforming Rosy Blue from a manufacturing and trading company to a global marketer of a broad range of products and services; Pankaj Mehta, CEO of Dimexon Eurostar, whose visionary leadership has built the company into a global diamond business with operations in over 11 countries across five continents and employing over 11,000 professionals; and Mahendra Parikh, chairman of Diarough, who has built the company into one of the largest diamond distributors in the world.

Regional players include Sheikh Jamil Farsi, chairman of Saudi-based Farsi Jewellery, the dean of Jewellers of the city of Jeddah and the chairman of the Gold and Jewellery Committee in the Chamber of Commerce in Jeddah; Nabeel al Zain, president of Bahrain-based Al Zain Jewellery, one of the oldest jewellery houses in Bahrain that introduced elegant 18-carat gold jewellery from Italy, revolutionising the traditional trading pattern of 21 and 24-carat in the region.

Representatives of the diamond trade in Dubai who have been confirmed as members of the board include Tamjid Abdullah, deputy managing director, Damas Jewellery, which has grown from a UAE-based company to a global fashion and jewellery network over the past century; and Amit Dhamani, managing director, Dhamani Jewels, an authoritative figure in the regional and global jewellery retail industry. Dhamani Jewels is also the distributor of Dubai Cut, the 99 faceted diamond inspired by the 99 holy names of Allah, trademarked by DMCC.

Leading international figures in the diamond business who have also joined the DDE board include Roberto Coin, president of Roberto Coin, who has established Roberto Coin among the best known jewellery brands in the United States; and Arnaud Flambeau, CEO of Scintilla-Monaco, the leading jewellery brand based in Monte Carlo, Monaco.

“The diverse international composition of the DDE’s board is a clear reflection of our truly global status in the diamond trade,” said Peter Meeus, chairman of the board of directors of the DDE.

Established in 2004, DDE is a member of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) and a keen supporter of the WFDB in all its initiatives. As the UAE is a signatory to the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme, which ensures that all rough diamonds imported to and exported from the country have been mined in a legitimate matter, the Dubai Diamond Exchange fully complies with the Kimberly Process.-TradeArabia News Service