The WFDB was founded in 1947 to unite and to provide bourses trading in rough and polished diamonds and precious stones, with a common set of trading practice. The WFDB provides a legal framework and convenes to enact regulations for its 28 member diamond bourses.
The seat of the Federation is in Belgium- Antwerp consisting of General Secretariat. The seat of the elected president is in the country where the elected president resides. The seat of the Secretariat and the offices of the Secretary – General is in the country where the Secretary-Genaral resides. The function of the WFDB is as diverse as the members who belong to it. Ethics, good business practice and morality are paramount and these are protected vigorously by the Constitution of the WFDB which provides for Arbitration and Disciplinary procedures against any bourse member who transgresses the code.
The purpose of the WFDB is to promote understanding and closer co-operation between people all over the world who earn their livelihood in the diamond and precious stones trade. Furthermore, WFDB encourages the establishment of bourses with a view to eventual affiliation.
Members of the Bourses affiliated to the World Federation of Diamond Bourses pledge themselves to uphold the traditions, principles of mutual trust, consideration and friendship which prevail among the members of the bourses world-wide. They pledge themselves to abide by and hand down these principles and to ensure that they will forever serve as a basis in business relations between members of the affiliated bourses world-wide.
The regulations of WFDB aims to ensure diamond trade on fair trade and sustainable development of world diamond trade. Decisions are made by WFDB to set up and to sustain morality rules in diamond markets. In addition to regulation rules, decisions are made on synthethic and treated diamonds or arbitration of conflicts between the market participants and on forming uniform rules in diamond trading all over the world. In this manner, on the forming stage of an organized diamond market in Turkey, it is vital to become member to WFDB, for getting integrated to the world diamond markets and to establish operational and ethic rules which are applicable in the world diamond markets.
Delegation
Each affiliated Bourse is represented at the Congress of the WFDB by a maximum of three members, The President of each Bourse is by right one of the three delegates. When a delegate is elected an Executive Officer of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses either as President, Vice-President, Secretary-General, Treasurer-General, his Bourse may appoint an additional delegate, in order to have the full complement of three delegates. The delegates of the Bourses affiliated to the WFDB shall meet every two years in a Congress under the direction of the President. The presidents meet at least once a year.
Executive Committee
The Executive Committee consists of the President, the Vice-President, the Secretary-General, the Treasurer-General and six additional executive members, all of whom are to be nominated at least three months before the date of Congress.
The President, the Vice-President and the six additional executive members are to be Presidents of their own Bourses, and the Secretary-General and the Treasurer- General shall be members of the Board of Directors of their own Bourses. No country may have more than two seats on the Executive Committee. The President and the Vice-President cannot be elected for more than three consecutive terms of office. The three major manufacturing and trading centres: Antwerp, Tel Aviv and New York, shall each nominate the President of one of its Bourses for membership in the Executive Committee at the next Congress. Each of these three designated centres are represented on the Executive Committee at all times.
Application For the Membership
Bourses whose members deal in diamonds, precious stones or jewellery are entitled to apply for membership of the WFDB provided they have been established for at least one full year under a written Constitution, have a clearly designated and representative governing body, and are able to prove their means of subsistence.
The Constitution odf the applicant must contain the principal commercial and business rules and procedures in use in the diamond trade. Applications have to be submitted with a certified copy of the Constitution, translated into English and shall state readiness to accept the By-Laws and Inner Rules of the WFDB, and to comply with their provisions and with the resolutions of the Congresses of the WFDB.
Applications shall be submitted for decision to the next Congress.
Applications are to be sent to the Secretary-General of the WFDB, at least six months before the date of the Congress. They shall at once be communicated to each affiliated Bourse.
The Bourse which makes the application for membership to the World Federation of Diamond Bourses shall commit itself and its members not to restrict any trade with the countries where the affiliated Bourses are situated.
The Bourse which makes the application for membership to the World Federation of Diamond Bourses shall file with the WFDB a certified copy of its Regulations applicable to arbitrations.
Changes to these Regulations should also be notified to the World Federation of Diamond Bourses. If the original texts are in a different language, English translations will be added.
Related Links
• http://www.worldfed.com
