Diamond Miner Buys Blockchain Firm

The biggest diamond mining company has joined the process of using blockchain technology to support the quality and ethics of gem supplies.

Lucara Diamond Corp. bought the operator of a digital platform selling rough diamonds, as well as blockchain technology that seeks to track gems through the industry’s supply chain.

The Vancouver-based miner joins much larger rivals De Beers and Russia’s Alrosa PJSC in exploring blockchain tech. De Beers said last month it was piloting a virtual ledger to reassure buyers that stones are genuine and aren’t funding armed conflicts. Such systems may also guard banks against fraud in a secrecy-cloaked industry, where loans are often based on paper invoices.

Lucara agreed to pay about $29 million in stock to buy Clara Diamond Solutions Corp. Clara has a platform, which supports buying rough diamonds tailored for a specific polished outcome.

The miner, which also announced the retirement of Chief Executive Officer William Lamb, says it will use the platform to sell some of its own output in coming months before expanding to third-party production. De Beers also plans to open its blockchain platform to others.

Lamb will be replaced by Eira Thomas steping down after 10 years and is well known in the Canadian industry.