On April 15, 2008 in Moscow, President of OAO Lukoil Vagit Alekperov, Chairman of De Beers Societe Anonym (De Beers) Nicky Oppenheimer, Managing Director of De Beers Gareth Penny, Chairman of Archangel Diamond Corporation (ADC) Bruce Cleaver and Director of ADC Tom Beardmore-Grey signed agreements on ownership rights and development terms for the Verkhotina Area located to the North-West of Arkhangelsk.

In October 2007, ALROSA’s President Sergey Vybornov invited the participants of the world diamond market to consider the possibility to use the Swiss Frank instead of the U.S. Dollar as the payment currency in rough diamonds transactions. In February 2008, a similar opinion was expressed by Garreth Penny, CEO of De Beers, who said that probably it was time to realize the alternative to the dollar.

Underlying earnings increased 14 percent to US$483 million (2006 US$425 million) while EBITDA remained steady as effective cost management at the Group’s African mining operations offset the impact of slightly lower sales which were constrained by supply to the Diamond Trading Company (DTC).

Activities of American secret services made it possible to assume that a source of rough diamonds for the Third Reich war industry might be De Birs Company. This somewhat confirmed strange unwillingness by Ernst Oppengamer to take De Birs stocks to the USA.

In the 30s of the last century Brazil was the only rough diamonds exporting country, thе Government of which was loyal to Hitler. The rest significant exporters (in the first instance the South African Republic) were either a part of the British Commonwealth, where De Birs Corporation directly controlled recovery and marketing of diamonds , or such control was exercised through agreements signed with the Central Marketing Organization (for example, Forminier Company in Belgian Congo).