Editor’s Note
This article highlights a significant step in the adoption of blockchain technology within the luxury goods sector. The participation of a major retailer like Chow Tai Fook in De Beers’ Tracr platform underscores the growing industry demand for supply chain transparency and provenance assurance, particularly in key markets like Greater China.
Hong Kong jewelry giant Chow Tai Fook has joined the pilot project for Tracr, the end-to-end diamond blockchain platform developed by the De Beers Group. De Beers announced on Wednesday that Chow Tai Fook’s participation will further extend the platform’s reach into the Asian diamond industry, particularly the Greater China region.
Chow Tai Fook is no stranger to blockchain technology in the diamond industry. In September of this year, the company utilized a solution developed by blockchain startup Everledger, backed by the IBM Blockchain Platform, to enhance its diamond traceability services.
Kent Wong, Managing Director of Chow Tai Fook, pointed out that authenticity, origin, and traceability have become critically important in the jewelry industry.
he stated in a joint announcement.
The jewelry industry, especially leading companies, is increasingly adopting blockchain distributed ledger technology (DLT). DLT is a general term for shared and synchronized databases aimed at ensuring the authenticity of diamonds sold by tracking them from the mine to the jewelry store.
Signet, the world’s largest diamond jewelry retailer, was among the first to join De Beers’ pilot project earlier this year. Meanwhile, Alrosa (MCX: ALRS), the world’s largest diamond producer by volume and a key competitor to De Beers based in Russia, is also testing Tracr.
Tracr provides a unique ID for each diamond it tracks, recording characteristics such as weight, color, and clarity. In the view of blockchain advocates, this technology could soon become the verification standard for the diamond industry.