Editor’s Note
This report details a remarkable display of luxury spending at a Geneva auction, where a Hong Kong tycoon acquired two rare diamonds for a staggering sum. While the purchases highlight the exclusivity of the high-end auction market, they also invite broader reflection on wealth, value, and the global circulation of capital.
The international auction market was stunned as Hong Kong real estate tycoon Joseph Lau (Liu Luanxiong) spent a combined $86.4 million (approximately 100 billion won) over two days to acquire two exceptionally large diamonds at Sotheby’s in Geneva, Switzerland, according to reports from AFP and other foreign media. On November 10th and 11th, he purchased a pink diamond for 33 billion won and a blue diamond for 56 billion won, respectively.
The tycoon named the acquired diamonds after his seven-year-old daughter, Josephine. The 12.03-carat blue diamond, named ‘The Blue Moon of Josephine’, was purchased for 48.6 million Swiss francs (about 56 billion won) on the 11th. The pink diamond was named ‘The Sweet Josephine’. This follows a pattern, as Lau had previously named a blue diamond he bought for 11 billion won in 2009 ‘The Star of Josephine’. The total cost of these three ultra-high-value diamonds, all named for his daughter, reaches approximately $86.4 million.
Born in Hong Kong in 1951, Joseph Lau entered the family business of ceiling fan manufacturing in 1974. He and his brother accumulated wealth through a series of corporate mergers and acquisitions. His net worth was estimated by Forbes in October of this year at $10.9 billion (approximately 126 trillion won).