DDC Feted by Industry Leaders & U.S. Government on 75th Anniversary

NEW YORK, MAY 17, 2006. The leadership of the International Diamond and Jewellery Industries gathered in New York, to celebrate with members of the Diamond Dealers Club (DDC) the 75th year since the diamond exchange's founding. During the gala dinner that concluded the day-long proceedings, the Diamond Dealers Club received a special international trade achievement award from the U.S. Department of Commerce, which was presented to Club President Jacob Banda by Dr. David A. Sampson, Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Commerce Department.

During the gala dinner, the DDC honored three diamond industry leaders for their lifetime contribution to the trade. They were Kaushik K. Mehta, Chairman of Antwerp-headquartered Eurostar Diamond Traders; Serguei Oulin, Vice President of Alrosa Ltd, and President of the Diamond Chamber of Russia, from Moscow; and Shmuel Schnitzer, President of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses, from Ramat Gan. The tribute to Mehta was delivered by Rory More O'Ferrall, the Director of External Affairs of De Beers. The tribute to Oulin was delivered by Maurice Tempelsman, the Chairman of Lazare Kaplan International; and the tribute to Schnitzer was delivered by DDC President Banda. %% Also honored during the gala dinner was DDC Secretary Sylvain Ringer, who had been the driving force behind the organization of the 75th anniversary celebration. Praising him for his dedication and courage, Banda and Izhakoff inducted Ringer into the New York diamond industry's Hall of Fame. %% Anna Martin, Senior Vice President at ABN AMRO, the sponsor of the gala dinner, expressed appreciation for the special role played by the DDC in the diamond industry worldwide.%% He expressed the appreciation of the U.S. government to the DDC's success in “creating international trade opportunities.”

{{Great Contribution to US Economy :}}$$ “The diamond jewellery trade in the United States is currently more than $30 billion per annum, and a major portion of the diamonds that have been set in that jewellery is channeled through the membership of our club,” said Banda in response to Dr. Sampson's tribute. “Billions of dollars more are recorded each year in sales of polished diamonds through exports. Our trade provides thousands of jobs to the U.S. economy and billions of dollars in taxpayer contributions each year. We are extremely proud for the recognition of our contribution to the U.S. economy, in our nation's capital.”

{{Day Long Celebration :}}$$ The day began with a morning ceremony, sponsored by the International Gemmological Institute (IGI), at the Rainbow Room, high above Rockefeller Centre, at which the DDC presented distinguished service awards to a group of industry leaders, as well as to DDC office holders, directors and arbitrators. Also honored were a group of diamantaires who have been members of the DDC for 50 years and more. The DDC veterans, many of whom were accompanied by family members, were visibly moved when during an audio-visual presentation photographs from their original application forms were shown to the audience. “The diamond trade is not simply a business sector,” said Jacob Banda, in his speech to the gathering. “For those of us who are involved in it, it is a proper community with a strong sense of identity, a moral code and a vibrant culture. The Diamond Dealers Club is its common home.”

{{Memorable Birth of DDC :}}$$In his address to the morning gathering, Eli Izhakoff, the Honorary President of the DDC and the Chairman of the World Diamond Council, recalled how a missing diamond, which fell into the trouser-cuff of a diamantaire, provided the original incentive for creating a proper diamond club in New York in 1931. “The diamond was recovered, a day later. If it had been found immediately, then probably the Diamond Dealers Club would never have been created,” he said to the laughter of the audience.%% Following a luncheon for DDC members back at the Club on 47th Street, the gathering returned to the Rainbow Room in the evening for a gala dinner. Participants were treated to a spectacular sunset room high above the New York City skyline, and an exhibition of jewellery from the 2005 HRD Awards design competition, which was flown to New York especially for the event.