DiamondBuzz

Augmont expands SPOT Gold Trading platform with lab grown diamond integration for global markets

Augmont, India’s largest gold trading platform announced that it has added Lab Grown Diamonds (LGD) to its existing online SPOT trading platform for precious metals catering to more than 5,000 jewellers across the country.

Published

2 years ago

January 29, 2025

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The enhanced SPOT 2.0 platform brings Augmont’s 17 years of precious metals trading expertise to the growing LGD sector. This addition represents an evolution of diamond trading infrastructure, particularly as India maintains its position as the world’s largest diamond cutting and polishing destination.

The platform enhancement introduces transparent pricing mechanisms and streamlined procurement processes for the LGD market inspiring confidence among key stakeholders. This strategic move is set to streamline the procurement for jewellers while establishing a transparent and efficient pricing mechanism for the rapidly growing LGD market in India.

Ketan Kothari, Director of Augmont Group, said, “Augmont has firmly established itself as India’s go-to destination for buying and selling gold. Building on this strong foundation, we are proud to have our own lab-grown diamond (LGD) platform on Augmont SPOT, addressing the surging demand in this rapidly growing industry. The platform will enable market pricing and delivery of these diamonds globally including USA, Europe, Gulf and East Asia’’

Aarav Bafna, Product Head (LGD), Augmont, said, “With the extended version of SPOT, we plan to set a benchmark for LGD pricing. The current LGD pricing model, based solely on discounts relative to mined diamonds, is fundamentally flawed and irrational. Augmont is here to transform that narrative. Just as we revolutionized gold trading and price discovery in India, we are now ready to redefine and reimagine the LGD market.”

SPOT offers a comprehensive and unified trading experience, enabling jewellers to source all their manufacturing requirements—including gold, silver, platinum, lab-grown diamonds, precious metal alloys, precious stones, and other essential materials—through a single integrated online platform. It also features real-time price discovery powered by advanced algorithms and market mechanisms, ensuring transparent and fair pricing. Quality assurance is a priority, with certification and verification processes for all listed diamonds. Built upon Augmont’s proven 17-year-old trading infrastructure, SPOT ensures seamless integration for a reliable and efficient trading experience.

The platform addresses the growing demand for lab-grown diamonds, which have gained significant market share due to their sustainable nature and competitive pricing. SPOT is expected to handle substantial trading volumes, reflecting India’s dominant position in the global LGD polishing industry.

As per the Commerce Ministry’s data, India polishes almost 98% of all lab-grown diamonds in the world in 2022.

As per the EY report, the demand for Lab-Grown Diamonds is rising across the world, and its global market size is growing at 8.64% CAGR to touch $39.3 billion by 2028. And the Indian lab-grown diamond jewellery market, which was valued at around $300 million in 2023, is set to increase to $1.2 billion by 2033.

DiamondBuzz

SCS Global Ending “Sustainably Rated” Certificates For Diamonds, Gems

SCS Said The Decision Reflected Market Conditions That Had Failed To Support The Voluntary Programme At Scale. It Also Cited The Lack Of Adoption By The Mining Sector and The Absence Of A Clear Regulatory Framework For Product-Level Chain-Of-Custody

Published

5 hours ago

September 22, 2026

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SCS Global Services and its nonprofit standards arm, SCS Standards, have retired the SCS-007 certification programme for sustainably produced diamonds and gemstones, ending one of the industry’s more prominent third-party sustainability certification schemes.

The programme was formally retired on September 1, 2026. SCS Global Services will no longer conduct audits against the standard, while SCS Standards will no longer maintain it. Companies that already hold certifications can continue to use them until their existing expiry dates.

SCS said the decision reflected market conditions that had failed to support the voluntary programme at scale. It also cited the lack of adoption by the mining sector and the absence of a clear regulatory framework for product-level chain-of-custody claims across an increasingly fragmented supply chain.

SCS-007 was originally introduced in 2020 as a framework for independently assessing environmental, social, climate and traceability performance in the diamond supply chain. Its scope subsequently expanded to include emeralds, rubies and sapphires. The standard incorporated requirements covering governance, traceability, environmental stewardship, social responsibility and climate performance.

The programme initially focused heavily on laboratory-grown diamonds. By 2024, SCS said it had certified eight lab-grown diamond producers, 12 diamond handlers and 65 retailers across 14 countries, with more than 100,000 certified diamonds sold through more than 500 stores.

However, adoption remained limited. Industry participants cited by JCK have also pointed to the cost and complexity of certification, particularly for growers, cutters and polishers.

The retirement comes as consumers and jewellery companies continue to seek independently verifiable information on the environmental and social credentials of diamonds. SCS Standards said it remains open to working with existing industry schemes that could build on the chain-of-custody framework developed through SCS-007.