Israel Diamond Exchange facts for kids
The Israel Diamond Exchange Ltd. is a very important place in Ramat Gan, Israel. It is known as the biggest diamond exchange in the world! This exchange is the heart of Israel's diamond industry.
It is a private company with about 3,100 members. These members are called diamantaires. They work with diamonds in many ways. They do things like diamond cutting, which means shaping diamonds. They also do diamond trading, which involves buying and selling diamonds. This includes marketing, helping people buy and sell (brokerage), and sending diamonds to and from other countries.
The exchange is located in a special area called the Diamond Exchange District. It has four large buildings. These buildings are connected by bridges. This creates one big complex. Inside, you can find the world's largest area for trading diamonds. It has 1,000 office rooms, restaurants, banks, and even places to send mail and packages.
Contents
History of Diamonds in Israel
Early Beginnings
The very first place to cut diamonds in Israel opened in 1937. It was in a town called Petach Tikva. Two cousins, Asher Anshel Daskal and Zvi Rosenberg, started it. They were professional diamantaires who learned their skills in Antwerp. They came from Romania during the time when Britain ruled the area, known as the British Mandate.
The diamond industry grew a lot over the next seven years. However, between 1944 and 1948, things became difficult. The industry faced many problems and in February 1948, it completely shut down. It seemed like it might not recover.
Growth and New Buildings
After a fresh start, the industry began to grow again. By the 1960s, a group was formed to help diamond businesses. This group later became the Israel Diamond Exchange.
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 polished diamonds Israel sent to other countries increased a lot. It went from $200 million to $3.4 billion each year!
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. 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 came from one main source. This was the Diamond Trading Company. They had a special group of buyers called Sightholders. These were selected companies allowed to buy large amounts of rough diamonds. About 10 Israeli diamantaires were part of this group. This company was controlled by the De Beers Group. De Beers was the biggest producer and seller of rough diamonds in the world.
However, in the 1990s, the power of the De Beers Group became weaker. This happened because other diamond traders started buying diamonds directly. They bought them from diamond producers in countries like Russia and in Africa. This meant more ways for diamonds to enter the market.
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
