Headlines

Diamond Company Announces CEO Change, Acquisition of Blockchain Platform

Published

6 years ago

February 26, 2018

INSTORE Staff

The new chief is a company co-founder.

VANCOUVER, BC — Lucara Diamond Corp. announced that William Lamb is retiring from the role of CEO and stepping down from the board of directors.

Eira Thomas, a founder and director of the company, will be assuming the role of CEO. In addition, Catherine McLeod Seltzer, also a Lucara co-founder, will be joining the board.

Under Lamb’s leadership, the company’s flagship Karowe mine has evolved into one of the world’s highest margin diamond mines and the foremost producer of large, Type IIA diamonds in excess of 10.8 carats, according to a press release. That includes the historic 1,109 carat Lesedi La Rona (second largest gem diamond ever recovered) and the 813 carat Constellation (sold for a record US$63.1 million).

Lamb plans to “remain closely associated with the Company in an ongoing role as a technical advisor,” the release explains.

Assuming the role of CEO, Thomas brings more than 25 years experience in the mining industry, including 16 years with Aber Diamond Corp. (now Dominion Diamond), where she served in ever increasing roles from initial discovery as a geologist to vice president exploration and ultimately a director of the board. She was co-founder of Stornoway Diamond Corp., serving first as CEO and then as executive chairman. There she led the acquisition of the Renard diamond deposit which subsequently became Quebec’s first diamond mine. In 2007, she founded Lucara with partners Lukas Lundin and McLeod Seltzer.

Thomas most recently served as CEO of Kaminak Gold Corp., which was acquired by Goldcorp in 2016 for $520 million. Thomas is also a director of Suncor Energy.

McLeod Seltzer has been directly involved in more than $4 billion in corporate transactions in the past 25 years and has been instrumental in helping build a number of successful mineral companies, including Arequipa Resources, Francisco Gold, Miramar Mining, Bear Creek Mining, Stornoway Diamonds and Peru Copper Inc.

Meanwhile, Lucara also announced the acquisition of Clara Diamond Solutions Corp., described as “a company whose primary asset is a secure, digital sales platform that will transform how rough diamonds are sold, unlocking value for diamond producers and manufacturers alike.” Clara uses proprietary analytics together with cloud and blockchain technologies to modernize the existing diamond supply chain.

Lucara agreed to purchase Clara for a total up-front consideration of 13.1 million shares of Lucara (about $29 million in up-front consideration based on the closing price of Lucara common shares as of Feb. 22).

This Third-Generation Jeweler Was Ready for Retirement. He Called Wilkerson

Retirement is never easy, especially when it means the end to a business that was founded in 1884. But for Laura and Sam Sipe, it was time to put their own needs first. They decided to close J.C. Sipe Jewelers, one of Indianapolis’ most trusted names in fine jewelry, and call Wilkerson. “Laura and I decided the conditions were right,” says Sam. Wilkerson handled every detail in their going-out-of-business sale, from marketing to manning the sales floor. “The main goal was to sell our existing inventory that’s all paid for and turn that into cash for our retirement,” says Sam. “It’s been very, very productive.” Would they recommend Wilkerson to other jewelers who want to enjoy their golden years? Absolutely! “Call Wilkerson,” says Laura. “They can help you achieve your goals so you’ll be able to move into retirement comfortably.”