Swiss luxury group Richemont is reportedly discussing joining a consortium that aims to buy South African diamond producer De Beers. The information comes from the Bloomberg news agency and was picked up on October 16, 2026 by Keystone-SDA and SWI swissinfo.ch. This is interest reported by sources close to the sale process, not an announced offer: neither Richemont nor the other parties mentioned have confirmed it.

What Bloomberg reports

According to Bloomberg, Richemont is reportedly in talks with Signet Jewelers, a major American jewelry retailer, about joining the Global Diamond Consortium (GDC). This group intends to acquire De Beers and, again according to the agency, is in a very strong position in the negotiations.

The GDC is led by Gareth Penny, a former chief executive of De Beers. It was reportedly named preferred bidder in July by De Beers’ owner, the British group Anglo American. Anglo American holds 85% of the diamond producer and announced its intention to sell it as early as 2024. The consortium also includes the governments of Namibia and Angola, as well as major diamond producers.

When contacted by Bloomberg, neither the GDC, nor Signet Jewelers, nor Richemont confirmed an interest in buying De Beers. At this stage, there is therefore no indication of the stake Richemont would take in a possible consortium, nor of the amount involved: the sources do not specify it.

For Richemont, a question of position in the industry

For a luxury group like Richemont, the appeal of such a deal would lie in its place in the diamond chain: a shareholding in De Beers would bring it closer to the mining and sourcing of stones. However, the sources detail neither the motivations attributed to the group nor which jewelry houses would be concerned. It would therefore be premature to draw conclusions about its strategy, its brands or its workforce.

This news comes during a period of reorganization for the group. On October 9, 2026, SWI swissinfo.ch reported that Richemont was restructuring its watch brand Montblanc, based in Le Locle, with job cuts. The sources make no link between that matter and the reported interest in De Beers.

A diamond market emerging from a deep crisis

The sale of De Beers comes as demand for precious stones recovers after one of the deepest crises the sector has ever experienced, according to Bloomberg. This is a recovery described by the agency, with no figures published in the sources consulted, which make it impossible to measure its extent or to compare its level with that before the crisis. Nor do they address the competition between natural and lab-grown diamonds.

The presence of Namibia and Angola in the consortium is also a reminder that the future of De Beers concerns not only private players but also producing states. For Richemont, what is at stake remains hypothetical at this stage: as long as neither the group nor the consortium speaks out, the interest reported by Bloomberg remains one possibility among others, not a transaction.

Sources

  • SWI swissinfo.ch: “Swiss luxury group ‘interested in buying’ diamond giant De Beers”