GIA's New Grading: Impact on Diamond Industry

Mumbai, Jun 3 (PTI) The diamond industry welcomed the Gemological Institute of America's (GIA) decision to no longer use its internationally recognised 4Cs grading system for laboratory-grown diamonds, which will help bring greater transparency.

"GIA's decision to use descriptive terms instead of the famous 4Cs grading for laboratory-grown diamonds marks an important evolution in diamond classification. This change will help eliminate confusion by clearly distinguishing how lab-grown diamonds are assessed, separate from the standards developed for natural diamonds," Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) chairman Kirit Bhansali said in a statement.

GIA, a nonprofit organisation and the world's foremost authority in gemology, recently announced that it will no longer use its internationally recognised 4Cs grading system - cut, colour, clarity, and carat weight - for laboratory-grown diamonds.

Instead, later this year the lab-grown diamonds submitted to GIA will receive simplified descriptors-categorised broadly as either 'premium' or 'standard'.

For consumers, Bhansali said, it will bring greater transparency and ensure that purchasing decisions are based on a clear understanding of a diamond's origin and characteristics.

"For India, as a leading hub for both natural and lab-grown diamonds, this change brings much-needed clarity and balance to the marketplace - allowing both categories to grow with greater transparency, integrity, and consumer confidence," he added.


De Beers India Managing Director Amit Pratihari said the GIA's decision to grade lab-grown substitutes separately is a timely and important move that brings much-needed clarity to consumers.

It reinforces the fundamental differences between natural diamonds and lab-grown - not just in origin, but in emotional and enduring value. At De Beers, we've always maintained that natural diamonds are rare, billions of years old, and deeply symbolic - a fact that resonates strongly with Indian consumers, he added.

"The recent closure of Lightbox's, De Beers' lab-grown diamond jewellery brand, direct-to-consumer retail operations only reaffirms what we're seeing globally: that consumer demand continues to gravitate toward natural diamonds when it comes to marking life's most meaningful moments," he said.

Henry Smith, Head of sales, Institute of Diamonds, a part of the De Beers Group, said, GIA's adoption of a distinct grading framework for LGDs is a significant advancement in safeguarding the gemological integrity of the diamond industry.

"At the Institute of Diamonds, we recognise that natural diamonds and lab-grown synthetics differ not only in origin but in their formation process, trace elements, and growth characteristics distinctions that have measurable implications for assessment. Natural diamonds are rare geological treasures formed under immense heat and pressure over billions of years," he stated.

Applying the same 4Cs grading system to lab-grown synthetics, which are produced in a matter of weeks in controlled environments, can lead to misinterpretation of value and rarity, therefore, GIA's move supports a more accurate and transparent classification system that aligns with the scientific and commercial realities of the two products, he added.