Rosy Blue Launched A $100 million Bond Backed By Diamonds

Rosy Blue, the Antwerp based diamond company, launched a $100 million bond on Monday. What is unique about it is the fact that the deal backed by their entire stock of rough and polished diamond reported the Financial Times.

Nomura International brought the deal to the market with banks in Belgium, France and Switzerland, and London branches of Asian banks, said Colin Lally of Nomura International. The bond will mature in July 2008.

The deal was originally planned to launch in the summer, but tax issues caused a delay.

"This diamond deal was an obvious step forward in the securitization of luxury goods. This was not a bread and butter deal, but a bespoke form of corporate finance," added Mr. Lally.