DMCC has expanded the Dubai Diamond Exchange Board of Directors. This move adds fresh industry weight to one of Dubai’s most important platforms for the global diamond and precious stones trade.
The move brings Neil Ventura, Weizhang Liang, and Wafa Jaffery onto the board. This strengthens the exchange’s leadership across diamond markets, international trade, governance, and responsible sourcing. DMCC announced the appointments on June 23, 2026. As a result, the update is positioned as another step in reinforcing Dubai’s role as a global hub for diamonds and precious stones.
Not Just New Names on a Board
Board appointments can sound procedural. This one is more strategic than that.
The Dubai Diamond Exchange sits inside DMCC’s wider precious stones ecosystem. That ecosystem already plays a major role in connecting traders, investors, jewellery businesses, banks, and international industry bodies. By expanding the board, DMCC is adding more experience from the parts of the diamond business that matter right now. These include sourcing, policy, transparency, market access, and technology.
That mix is important. The diamond trade is no longer only about volume and location. Buyers, regulators, and industry groups now care more about traceability, governance, standards, and responsible supply chains. Dubai wants to be part of that conversation, not just a place where deals happen.
Neil Ventura Brings Global Diamond Experience
One of the new board members, Neil Ventura, joins as Member and Secretary of the DDE Board. His background runs across more than 35 years in the diamond and precious stones value chain, including mining, trading, jewellery, and technology. He has also held senior roles at De Beers and Anglo American. His experience is tied to initiatives such as De Beers Auction Sales, Tracr, Lightbox, and GemFair.
That matters because the future of the diamond trade is not sitting in one lane. Instead, it touches physical stones, digital tracking, lab-grown discussions, jewellery demand, responsible sourcing, and global market confidence. Ventura’s current role as Special Advisor to DMCC’s Precious Stones Ecosystem also keeps the appointment close to Dubai’s broader diamond strategy.
Weizhang Liang Adds Policy and China Market Depth
Weizhang Liang also joins the board, bringing experience in international diamond policy, the Kimberley Process, and the Chinese diamond market. He previously served as China’s official Kimberley Process focal point for more than 15 years. In addition, he was the founding President of the Guangzhou Diamond Exchange.
That is a useful addition for Dubai. China remains one of the key markets in the global jewellery and diamond conversation, while the Kimberley Process remains central to international governance around conflict diamonds. Liang also supported the UAE’s Kimberley Process Chairmanship in 2025. Therefore, the appointment ties back to the UAE’s push for stronger cooperation and transparency in the trade.
Wafa Jaffery Strengthens the Governance Side
The third new appointment, Wafa Jaffery, brings another layer of industry governance and standards experience. She is a longstanding member of DMCC’s Precious Stones team and was elected to the World Diamond Council Board of Directors in 2026. Moreover, she serves on the Kimberley Process Task Force and the Responsible Jewellery Council Standards Committee, while acting as a certified mediator on the DDE Dispute Committee.
This is where the update gets more interesting. Jaffery’s appointment signals that DMCC is not only thinking about trading activity. It is also thinking about rules, trust, mediation, and how Dubai participates in shaping international industry standards.
Ahmed Bin Sulayem Continues as Chairman
The expanded board will continue under the chairmanship of Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of DMCC. The wider board includes leaders from DMCC, Emirates NBD, Dhamani Jewels, Stargems Group, 3X Diamonds, R Sahar Diamonds, Diarush, Panis Group, and other parts of the precious stones ecosystem.
That structure gives the exchange a board with a mix of free zone leadership, banking, trading, jewellery, policy, and operational experience. For a market like Dubai, that mix is useful. The city’s diamond sector does not grow through trading alone. It grows through infrastructure, finance, trust, dispute resolution, and access to international buyers and sellers.
Why This Matters for Dubai’s Free Zone Economy
For Emirates Free Zone News readers, the point is clear enough: this is not only a diamond industry story. It is also a free zone growth story.
DMCC has spent years building specialist ecosystems inside Dubai, from commodities and precious stones to technology, crypto, gaming, and other sectors. The Dubai Diamond Exchange is one of the clearest examples of that model. Instead of only offering company licences and office space, DMCC builds sector-specific platforms. These platforms bring trade, services, regulation, networking, and international credibility into one environment.
The board expansion supports that approach. It strengthens the leadership behind the exchange at a time when global diamond markets are dealing with shifting demand, stronger compliance expectations, and more scrutiny around sourcing.
Dubai Keeps Pushing for Global Diamond Leadership
Dubai has become one of the world’s major centres for diamonds and precious stones, and DMCC wants to keep that position moving forward. The new board appointments give the Dubai Diamond Exchange more depth at a time when the industry is changing quickly.
There is a practical message behind the announcement. Dubai is not only trying to host the diamond trade. It wants to help shape how the trade operates.
That means governance. It means responsible sourcing. It means international cooperation. It means bringing more serious industry experience into the room.
And in a sector where trust can be just as valuable as the stones themselves, that kind of leadership matters.