INVESTING
Diamonds are an Uncorrelated and Underallocated Asset Diamonds are a $1.2 trillion natural resource - more than silver and platinum combined. However, diamonds have always lacked the benefits of price discovery, transparency, liquidity, and low transaction fees. In market terms, there was too much friction for investors to properly be able to invest in diamonds as a commodity. “Diamonds have always been attractive to investors, and yet stubbornly out of reach,” explained Cormac Kinney, Founder & CEO of Diamond Standard, a fintech startup that just received regulatory approval for the world’s first and only fungible diamond commodity.
Startup Sees Strong Demand To Make
DIAMONDS an Investable Asset When it comes to investing in commodities, are gold, silver or platinum the only way to go? Hard assets are limited and protect against inflation because they’re not someone else’s liability. But what about producing returns when other hard assets fall? By Rich Monetti
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“Countless attempts were made to index diamond prices as an investment product, but the index prices were not actionable, so no one could obtain regulatory approval,” said Kinney. The entrepreneur was ready to take on the challenge. Tapping into his knowledge of modern technology like automatic market making, wireless technology, and optical authentication, Kinney has created a breakthrough. With innovations cited in nearly 4,000 U.S. Patents, Kinney has been the founder of four software startups acquired by public companies. He is a quant finance pioneer who invented heatmaps, designed over 100 institutional trading systems, and perfected sentiment analysis for statistical arbitrage, using it to manage over $500 million for Tudor and Millennium. He also played his cards right in life when he first met and eventually married influential jewelry designer Mimi So in New York. Known for her iconic jewels, accessories, and a large celebrity clientele, So’s company was founded as a partnership with luxury conglomerate Richemont, which subsequently sold its interest to Mimi So. With a new understanding of the frictions in the diamond business, Kinney focused on solving the challenge of creating a standardized diamond commodity. He knew that these factors would make diamonds an especially valuable addition to any investor portfolio.
