IndexIQ also filed with the SEC to launch a physically backed commodities fund that holds diamonds early last year.
Some argue that a physical diamond ETF would be impossible to pull off since it is hard to accurately quantify the cut, color, clarity and carat size of various diamonds. [Diamond ETFs Would Allow Investment in Precious Gems]
Nevertheless, accessing the diamond market through a liquid ETF vehicle could prove lucrative. For instance, Sotheby’s recently sold a 74.79 carat white diamond for $14.2 million, whereas estimates put the diamond at $9 million to $12 million, reports Robert Frank for CNBC.
“I generally think of top-quality diamonds not in terms of wealth creation, but instead as wealth retention, tangible assets that have global appeal and global value,” Lisa Hubbard, chairman of Sotheby’s North and South American International Jewelry division, said in the CNBC article.
For more information on diamonds, visit our diamond category.
Max Chen contributed to this article.