Israel Diamond Exchange facts for kids
The Israel Diamond Exchange is a very important place in Ramat Gan, Israel. It's like a huge marketplace and office center for people who work with diamonds. It's known as the biggest diamond exchange in the world! This exchange is the heart of Israel's diamond business.
About 3,100 people are members of this exchange. These members are called diamantaires. They do many things with diamonds, like cutting them into beautiful shapes or buying and selling them. They also help with sending diamonds to other countries.
The exchange is made up of four large buildings in an area called the Diamond Exchange District. These buildings are connected by bridges, making them one big complex. Inside, you'll find the world's largest area for trading diamonds. There are also 1,000 offices, restaurants, banks, and places to send mail and packages.
Contents
History of Diamonds in Israel
Early Days of Diamond Cutting
The first place to cut diamonds in the area opened in 1937. This was in a town called Petach Tikva. Two cousins, Asher Anshel Daskal and Zvi Rosenberg, started it. They were experts who learned about diamonds in a city called Antwerp. At that time, the area was under British rule.
The diamond business grew a lot over the next seven years. However, between 1944 and 1948, things became difficult. The industry even closed down completely in February 1948. It seemed like it might not recover.
Growth and the Exchange
But the diamond business started again and grew stronger. By the 1960s, a group was formed to help diamond traders. This group later became the Diamond Exchange we know today.
From 1967 to 1993, a person named Moshe Schnitzer was the President of the Israel Diamond Exchange. Under his leadership, the exchange grew very quickly. The amount of shiny, cut diamonds that Israel sold to other countries went from $200 million to $3.4 billion each year!
Building the Diamond District
In 1968, the first building in the complex opened. It was called the Shimshon Tower and had 22 floors. At that time, it was one of the tallest buildings in Israel. In the 1980s, two more buildings, the Maccabi Tower and Noam Tower, were built. Then, in 1992, the tallest building in the complex opened. It was the 32-story Diamond Tower.
How Diamonds Are Traded
For many years, most rough diamonds (diamonds that haven't been cut or polished yet) came from one main company. This company was the De Beers Group. They had a special group of buyers called "sightholders." About 10 Israeli diamond experts were part of this group.
However, in the 1990s, the De Beers Group's control became weaker. This happened because other diamond traders started buying diamonds directly from producers in countries like Russia and in Africa. This made the diamond market more open to different sellers.
See also
- Moshe Schnitzer, a very important person in the international diamond trade. He was President of the Israel Diamond Exchange from 1967 to 1993.
- Dan Gertler
- Lev Avnerovich Leviev
