DMCC, Dubai’s commodities-focused free zone, has established the Lab-Grown Diamond Vertical, creating a standalone platform for an industry increasingly driven by advanced manufacturing and technology alongside jewellery demand.
The announcement comes as the UAE recorded its highest-ever lab-grown diamond trade volumes in 2025.
A total of 76.9 million carats were traded during the year, up 91.5 per cent year-on-year, with the value of trade rising 7.5 per cent to $1.3 billion.
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Volumes have more than doubled since 2022, climbing 109 per cent from 36.8 million carats, with imports and re-exports expanding at broadly similar rates, pointing to sustained growth across the UAE’s trade flows rather than a shift concentrated in one segment.
DMCC’s decision to establish lab-grown diamonds as a standalone vertical reflects the increasingly distinct economics underpinning the sector.
It creates an explicit separation from DMCC’s natural diamond and coloured stone activities, in recognition that lab-grown diamonds are characterised by scalable manufacturing, technical specification and industrial utility.
“Lab-grown diamonds have reached the point where they need dedicated market infrastructure and a distinct economic case of their own, developed alongside the natural diamond trade rather than in place of it. For decades, China, India and the United States have driven the scientific, technological and industrial development that turned an experimental breakthrough into a global industry now estimated at close to $30 billion,” said Ahmed Bin Sulayem, executive chairman and CEO of DMCC.
“The most significant opportunity ahead may lie beyond jewellery, in semiconductors, diamond wafers, quantum technologies, medical devices, aerospace and other advanced applications where the material’s thermal, optical and mechanical properties become commercially important.”
He added that with 76.9 million carats of lab-grown diamonds traded through the UAE in 2025, more than double the 2022 figure, Dubai already has the scale to help shape the sector’s next phase.
DMCC’s Lab-Grown Diamond Vertical gives the industry a dedicated global platform to expand international trade flows, bring producers, technology companies and buyers closer together, and build the transparent market infrastructure the sector needs for its continued development.”
3 foundational markets
The modern lab-grown diamond industry has been built on three markets whose combined capabilities have shaped its global development: China as the dominant centre for industrial-scale production and R&D; India as a powerhouse for CVD growth, manufacturing and processing; and the US as a pioneer in diamond-growth technology and the industry’s largest consumer market. Japan, Israel and the UK are also established hubs for research, industrial applications and trade.
Beyond jewellery, lab-grown diamonds are increasingly being developed for advanced industrial uses. Their thermal, optical and semiconductor properties have potential applications in semiconductors and diamond wafers, quantum technologies, space systems and precision engineering.
The vertical will bring together global and regional producers, manufacturers, traders, investors, finance providers, technology companies and industrial users, while strengthening Dubai’s links with the industry’s main global markets. It will remain distinct from DMCC’s natural diamond and coloured stone activities.
The UAE’s total diamond trade reached a record $41.7 billion in 2025, alongside sharp growth in synthetic and industrial diamond volumes.
Source: Khaleej Times