SC AGD Diamonds and its Belgian subsidiary, Grib Diamonds, are the latest diamond companies with Russian ties to appear on an OFAC sanctions list.
Washington, D.C. – Two diamond companies and a Wagner Group official in the Central African Republic with ties to the gold trade are among the entities included in the latest round of Russian sanctions.
On 14 September, the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions on more than 100 additional Russian entities and individuals as part of an ongoing effort to cut off Russia’s sources of funding for the war in Ukraine.
In a member alert issued last week, the Jewellers Vigilance Committee noted that two more diamond companies were among the sanctioned entities: JSC AGD Diamonds, also known as AGD Diamonds, and Grib Diamonds.
AGD Diamonds is a diamond exploration, production and mining company based in Russia, while Grib Diamonds is its Belgium-based subsidiary.
AGD was designated under Executive Order 14024, which predates the war in Ukraine, for activities in the metals and mining sector of the Russian Federation economy.
In the alert, the JVC reminded members of what it has said repeatedly since the US began sanctioning Russian companies shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 – they need to understand where their diamonds come from.
The latest member alert states: “Jewellery companies are encouraged to continue the risk assessment process they have already undertaken, including using their AML [anti-money laundering]/KYC [know your customer] framework to go back into the supply chain and ensure they fully understand the scope of their diamond sourcing.
“US companies should continue to review their procurement protocols, discuss requirements with suppliers, and assess their supply chains using due diligence guidance.”
Also included in this new round of sanctions was Russian national Vitalij Victorovich Perfilev, a Wagner Group official who currently serves as national security advisor to the president of the Central African Republic.
Perfilev was designated for his ties to the Wagner Group, the Russian government-affiliated network of mercenaries already blocked under E.O. 14024 and sanctioned by the European Union since June.
The JVC said his designation was relevant to the industry because of the Wagner Group’s links to the gold trade in sub-Saharan Africa.
In June, a group of federal agencies took the unusual step of issuing a joint advisory calling attention to “bad actors” such as the Wagner Group that continue to exploit vulnerabilities in the gold supply chain there.
The JVC said that any jewellery company doing business with AGD Diamonds, Grib Diamonds and/or Perfilev should immediately cut ties.
