President of the Diamond Exchange from 2005 to 2011.
Lifelong Honorary President of the Diamond Exchange.
President of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses from 2008-2012.
In 2005, Avi Paz was appointed President of the Israel Diamond Exchange and in June 2007 he was unanimously elected for a second term. Paz, who hails from a family of diamantaires, was born in 1946 in Cuba. He grew up and lived in Belgium before moving to Israel in 1966. He served in the infantry unit of the Israel Defense Forces and fought in the Six Day War, the War of Attrition and the Yom Kippur War.
In 1971, after completing his military service, he entered the diamond trade. In 1977, he established the first factory polishing fancy diamonds and he is considered a world expert in this field.
Today he is the owner and CEO of the Avi Paz Group Fancy Ltd., amongst the leading diamond enterprises worldwide in fancy diamonds. The company controls one of the world's largest reserves of fancy diamonds and operates extensive worldwide business activities. The company has representative offices in Europe, USA and the Far East.
Alongside his business activities, Avi Paz has been involved in many public activities on behalf of the community and the Israel Diamond Exchange.
He served as a member of the Exchange panel of arbitrators for approximately 20 years and from1998 to 2011 served continuously as a member of the Diamond Exchange Directorate. He has served as Chairman of various committees including the Entry Tags Committee, Safes and Parking Committee, Judicial Committee, Computerization Committee and Security Committee.
Within the framework of his position, Avi Paz served as a Member of the Executive Committee of the Israel Diamond Manufacturers Association and as a member of the board of the Israel Diamond Institute.
In 2006, as part of the celebrations marking the 75th anniversary of the New York Diamond Exchange, Avi Paz was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to the global diamond industry.
From May 2008 until October 2012 he served as President of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) –an umbrella organization representing the 28 diamond bourses across the globe.
Avi Paz serves as a Vice President of the World Diamond Council (WDC) and in the capacity of Official Advisor to the Chinese government on the subject of the diamond industry.
