Ernst & Young carries out study on Waldman's investment diamond prices

One of the world's leading accounting firms, Ernst & Young (E&Y), has conducted a benchmark study on Waldman's investment diamond prices, comparing them with the industry wholesale and retail price range for equivalent diamonds.

E&Y's study demonstrates that WDI's diamond prices are six percent below average international wholesale prices, and between 25 to 46 percent lower than online retail prices, WDI said in a press release.

The E&Y team calculated the average price of a selection of 150 WDI investment-grade diamonds, and the average prices of the one carat, two carat and three carat stones, and compared them with average wholesale prices and retail prices for equivalent diamonds.

The wholesale pricing information was compiled from a sample of seven vendors, and the retail prices were obtained by averaging the prices for diamonds offered by 15 vendors on the PriceScope website.

"With increasing interest in the purchase of polished diamonds as an investment asset, we wanted to confirm that the prices of our diamonds were competitive against other wholesalers and retailers," said WDI founder and CEO, Alex Waldman.

The E&Y study shows that it is possible to compare the prices of similar gems despite criticism from some analysts and industry experts that diamonds are not a quantifiable asset, WDI said.

"WDI has established an open online marketplace for the purchase and resale of investment diamonds - the Waldman Investment Diamond Exchange - to make the pricing of individual stones more transparent. The analysis carried out by Ernst & Young demonstrates that our prices for investment diamonds are significantly lower than average wholesale and retail prices," Waldman explained.

"Just as real estate investors are urged to prioritize 'location, location, location'; when looking at investing in diamonds, investors should insist on 'transparency, transparency, transparency'," Waldman added.

WDI said it has commissioned Ernst & Young to repeat the benchmarking exercise for investment diamonds every three months this year.