Anglo American draws Botswana into $5B De Beers sale talks
Anglo American’s (LON: AAL) chief executive officer Duncan Wanblad said Botswana’s government will join negotiations with one or two shortlisted bidders for De Beers, as the mining giant moves to sell its 85% stake in the diamond producer.
“This isn’t going to be the classical first round, second round sale process that you would ordinarily receive for businesses of this type,” Wanblad told the Financial Times at the the publication’s annual Mining Summit.
Anglo will hold direct talks with selected bidders alongside Botswana, which owns 15% of De Beers through its Debswana joint venture. Wanblad said he expects the sale process to conclude within six months but did not rule out spinning off De Beers if negotiations fail.
The government’s participation marks a shift in tone after President Duma Boko criticized Anglo’s handling of De Beers and said his administration could run it more effectively. De Beers swung to a $189 million loss in the first half of 2025 from a $300 million profit a year earlier amid weak diamond prices, adding pressure for a deal.
Anglo values De Beers at about $5 billion, though analysts at UBS estimate the sale could generate between $3 billion and $4 billion, including deferred payments, given challenging market conditions.
Pan-African consortium
Angola’s state-owned Endiama has reportedly bid for a minority stake, proposing a pan-African consortium of diamond-producing nations to co-own De Beers. The two companies have partnered since 2022, when they signed and later expanded exploration and processing agreements. Their collaboration led to Angola’s first major kimberlite discovery in more than 30 years this August.
De Beers has also drawn interest from at least six consortia, including billionaire Anil Agarwal, Indian firms KGK Group and Kapu Gems, and Qatari funds.
Wanblad said Anglo was under no obligation to accept any offer but welcomed growing regional interest. “It’s really positive news that the government of Angola has expressed an interest in taking some ownership,” he said. “We’re taking all of this into the mix and working through what’s best for the business, for Anglo, and for Botswana.”
Feriel Zerouki exit
In a separate development, De Beers executive Feriel Zerouki announced she will step down as chief trade and industry officer and leave the executive committee at the end of October.
Zerouki, who joined De Beers in 2005, played a leading role in advancing ethical sourcing and transparency across the diamond supply chain.
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6 Comments
Bouquet Gérard
When I was teaching the locals …first thing hold your loop properly…
This lovely girl like this can’t see nothing.
Sekwati Donald Hlakudi
I am iterested
Boikago Ditdu
Can diamond be sold to individual in Botswana
Cecilia Jamasmie
In Botswana, the sale and trade of diamonds (especially rough/uncut diamonds) is regulated by law. If the diamonds are rough / uncut, you cannot simply sell them to anyone. The buyer (or seller) must typically be a licensed dealer under Botswana law. Even for cut / polished diamonds, there may be permit, export, or record-keeping requirements under the Diamond Cutting laws. The government exercises oversight, especially over export, disposal, and movement of diamonds.
More information here: https://botswanalaws.com/StatutesActpdf/1979Actpdf/DIAMOND%20CUTTING%20ACT%2C%2025%20OF%201979.pdf
Michael J Rexrode
De Beers=Dead Corporation Walking. Who in their right mind will pay an ENORMOUS premium for dug out of the dirt diamonds when chemically indistinguishable, conflict free, slave labor free, 99.5% CHEAPER diamonds can be had from India and China?
Kitso Mogopodi
Its amazing how crass and passive aggressive people that hate natural diamonds usually are.There is no reason to hate lab diamond lovers because its their preference but with that being said labs are a counterfeit industry if you understand the essence of the word ,they are designed and marketed to be exact but they arent,you cannot manufacture value for people like that,its the most capitalist thing but somehow it pales in comparison to old De Beers’ supply stunts.They are holding back right now on the trucloads of lab dianonds they can make to liberate supply prices.More and more they have to erode the distinction between lab and natural diamonds because its a scam,the thing with lab diamonds they all originate from the seed of a natural diamonds,so literally speaking none of them are made from scratch like natural ones have been doing for 4 billion years,thats why people still call them carbon copies,despite the ruling by the American FTC that all diamonds regardless of origin must be called natural,they are indistinguishable with the naked eye and for certain people thats okay,but dont make it sound ridiculous that most people still rate the natural kind.The only legit sentimental value of lab diamonds is the environmental safety,which is also shaky since they still use comparable amounts of water,electricity and rare earths.Even the price was initially on par with natural diamonds,it only just reached below 50% ,99% is straight lies.