The buyer, on condition of anonymity, confirmed that the main motive for him was value for money.
A new world record has been set for the most expensive online sale of a single diamond.
A 59-year-old US businessman purchased a 21.01-carat internally flawed diamond through the Rare Carat online marketplace for $2.5 million, completing the purchase without arranging an in-person inspection.
This sale topped the record set two years ago when the diamond was sold at auction for $2.1 million.
The previous record holder was a 28 carat VVS1 color diamond, the top lot at Christie’s Jewels Online auction held in June 2020.
After the purchase, the buyer negotiated an appraisal with gemologist Donald Palmieri, who said the circumstances of the sale were highly unusual.
“It’s a huge sale that usually happens in person,” Palmieri told the New York Post.
The buyer spoke to the press on condition of anonymity and confirmed that the main motive for him was value for money.
“I’m a guy who likes to know that I bought something at a bargain price and didn’t spend a lot of money,” he said.
The buyer estimates that he saved about $700,000 by purchasing online through Rare Carat.
Online jewelry sales have surged in recent years, helped in no small part by the pandemic. Online sales accounted for 25 percent of U.S. sales last year, up from 14 percent in 2015.
Recently published research by the De Beers Group shows that over 50 percent of online diamond jewelry purchases are made by first-time diamond jewelry buyers.
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