HB Antwerp Founders Seek New Opportunities
April 29, 25
(IDEX Online) - Two of HB Antwerp's co-founders are stepping down from their day-to-day leadership roles, saying the company had shifted away from its original mission - to "build a new blueprint for the diamond industry".
Rafael Papismedov and Shai de Toledo (who both served as managing partners) will remain shareholders of the company, established in 2020, but say they will "now focus on new opportunities".
In a joint statement issued yesterday (28 April) they made no mention of Oded Mansori, the third co-founder, who was ousted in September 2023 over a "sharp difference in strategic vision and approaches to business" - and who was reinstated (also as managing partner) less than a month later.
It was a time of considerable turmoil for the company. Shortly after Mansori's departure, Canadian miner Lucara ended its 10-year rough diamond sales agreement with HB - to sell all the +10.8-cts stones from its Karowe mine, in Botswana. It subsequently reinstated the deal in February 2024.
In addition, at around the same time, the Botswana government said it was re-thinking its decision to buy a 24 per cent stake in HB.
The move would, according to former President Mokgweetsi Masisi, herald "the dawn of a new era for the diamond industry in Botswana". No such deal has been signed.
In their statement Papismedov and de Toledo say: "We believed in a model anchored in local transfer of knowledge and long-term impact.
"But as the company's direction shifted away from that mission, we knew it was time to step back—and step into new ventures that continue to pursue our vision."
Pic shows (left) Shai de Toledo and Rafael Papismedov.