Starting a small company in an industry dominated by giants for over a century, in an industry full of secrets passed down through generations where no one likes change? That's exactly what the cofounders of HB Antwerp did. When they launched their diamond startup, the old-timers in Antwerp laughed at them. They were called dreamers with a “harebrained idea.” But no one’s laughing now – HB Antwerp is gaining significant traction in the diamond industry, taking on De Beers, a company that has been at the top for decades.
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The diamond industry is a $100 billion global market and Antwerp, Belgium, has long been its beating heart. The world's raw diamonds have traveled through Antwerp's diamond sector for over a century. The area is a maze of narrow streets and low-rise buildings that conceal a high-profile enterprise. Here, diamonds move from rough rocks to dazzling jewelry sold worldwide. But there's been one big player – De Beers, the name most people think of when they think of diamonds. De Beers has shaped how diamonds are mined, traded and marketed for over a century.
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Then, in 2020, as Fortune reports, HB Antwerp arrived with a different approach – one that has the potential to rewrite the rules of the diamond business. HB Antwerp simplified everything instead of following the traditional path, where rough diamonds are sold through multiple intermediaries, adding little value but a lot of opacity. They cut out all the middlemen and ensured the countries producing the diamonds got a bigger share of the profits.
From Botswana Mines to Blockchain
Botswana, which has some of the largest diamond reserves in the world, is a close partner of HB Antwerp. They collaborated with the country to guarantee that more of the value remains in the nation and support the expansion of the local economy. Instead of just buying the rough diamonds and reselling them, HB Antwerp offered Botswana a share of the final sale price of polished gems. This means more money stays where the diamonds are found rather than flowing back to London, Antwerp or Tel Aviv – the usual big hubs of the diamond trade.
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What's more, HB Antwerp has brought blockchain into the diamond world. The startup uses Microsoft-powered blockchain technology to track each diamond's journey from the mine to the jewelry store. This means transparency, accountability and proof of origin – things the diamond industry has traditionally lacked. Customers can now know where their diamond comes from, how it was mined and who benefited from its journey.
HB Antwerp is still small compared to De Beers, but its impact is expanding. The company owns some of the biggest diamonds ever found, which come from the Karowe mine in Botswana. Using advanced scanning technology, HB Antwerp and its mining partner, Lucara Diamond, have found enormous diamonds – some of the biggest ever pulled from the Earth.
The Diamond Giant Takes Notice
This fresh approach is forcing the rest of the industry to change. De Beers, the historic powerhouse, has started adjusting its practices. Recently, De Beers had to agree to give Botswana a bigger share of its revenues from diamond sales. It's a huge shift from the way things have worked for decades.
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