Nicky Oppenheimer to Receive Lifetime Achievement Award at JNA Awards Ceremony

HONG KONG, July 30, 2012 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- Jewellery News Asia (JNA), main organiser of the inaugural JNA Awards, announced today that it is conferring the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award on Nicky Oppenheimer, chairman of De Beers Group, honouring his significant contribution to the global diamond business, particularly in Asia. Oppenheimer will be feted at the JNA Awards ceremony scheduled for 20 September 2012 (Thursday) at The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong during the September Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair.

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Letitia Chow, founder of JNA and director of Business Development -- Jewellery Group at UBM Asia, and the Chair of the JNA Awards judging panel said: "By presenting Mr. Oppenheimer with the Lifetime Achievement Award, we want to salute and honour his significant and fundamental contributions to the industry. His outstanding achievements with De Beers and the Diamond Trading Company have made him one of the key figures and leaders of the global diamond industry.

"Mr. Oppenheimer, with his inspired guidance and outstanding leadership, has significantly contributed to the development of the diamond jewellery markets in China and India -- the twin growth engines in Asia, further enhancing the vital role that De Beers has played in the region by establishing the Japanese diamond jewellery market."

Nicky Oppenheimer, chairman of the De Beers Group said, "The Oppenheimer family's passion for diamonds, as well as our commitment to good corporate citizenship, goes back a long way. Over 50 years ago, my grandfather Sir Ernest Oppenheimer stated in his role as Chairman of De Beers that the company must be dedicated not only to generating returns for shareholders, but also to making a real and sustainable commitment to the countries and communities in which it operates. Although the Oppenheimer family's long association with De Beers has now come to an end, I have no doubt that this commitment remains as steadfast today as it was then.

"Throughout my time in the diamond industry, I have also been immensely proud to witness the growth of the consumer's love affair with diamonds, nowhere more so than in the exciting markets across Asia. It is therefore a real honour for me, representing generations of the Oppenheimer family, to receive this prestigious award from Jewellery News Asia," Oppenheimer continued.

Oppenheimer joined the Anglo American Corporation in 1968 and was appointed a director of the Anglo American Corporation in 1974 and a director of De Beers in 1978. He became a member of the Executive Committee of the board of Anglo American Corporation In 1981 and its Deputy Chairman in 1983. In 1984, he was appointed Deputy Chairman of the then Central Selling Organisation (now Diamond Trading Company). In 1985, he became Deputy Chairman of De Beers Consolidated Mines and Chairman of the Diamond Trading Company. In 1990, he was appointed Deputy Chairman of the newly formed Swiss-based company, De Beers Centenary AG. Oppenheimer subsequently became Chairman of the De Beers Group on 1 January 1998.

The shortlisted honourees for the first nine categories of the JNA Awards were announced on 21  June at a press conference held on the first day of the June Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. For the complete list, go to: www.jnaawards.com.

The Wonder of the World category, which is open only to AsiaWorld-Expo exhibitors during the September Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair 2012, will be accepting entries until 21 August 2012. The recipient of the award will be announced during the JNA Awards ceremony on 20 September 2012.

The JNA Awards features Rio Tinto and Chow Tai Fook as headline partners, with Israel Diamond Institute, Shanghai Diamond Exchange, Robert Wan Tahiti and the KARP Group as honoured partners.

About the JNA Awards

The JNA Awards is an industry-wide event that honours and recognises excellence and achievement in the jewellery trade. The Awards ceremony and gala dinner will be held on September 20, 2012, during the September Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair, at The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong. The event, the first of its kind in Asia, is organised by Jewellery News Asia (www.jewellerynewsasia.com) of UBM Asia in collaboration with UBM Awards.

The JNA Awards 2012 is a ticketed event by application only. Interested parties may submit their request by logging on to www.JNAawards.com.  

Jewellery News Asia, first published in 1983, is the flagship magazine of UBM Asia's (www.ubmasia.com) Jewellery Group. The publication is a leader in providing the latest industry updates and in-depth reports, covering the international jewellery trade with an Asia insight. Following its success, the publication launched its online edition, www.jewellerynewsasia.com in June 2011.

Note for Editors:

1. About UBM Asia (www.ubmasia.com)
Owned by UBM plc listed on the London Stock Exchange, UBM Asia operates in 19 market sectors with headquarters in Hong Kong and subsidiary companies across Asia, including UBM China in Shanghai, Hangzhou, Guangzhou and Beijing. We have over 240 products including trade fairs, conferences, trade publications, B2B/B2C portals and virtual event services. As Asia's leading exhibition organiser and the biggest commercial organiser in China, India and Malaysia, we stage the leading events of their kind across the region. Our 200 events, 24 publications and 16 vertical portals serve over 1,000,000 quality exhibitors, visitors, conference delegates, advertisers and subscribers from all over the world with high value face-to-face business-matching events, quality and instant market news and industry trends, and round-the-clock online trading networks and sourcing platforms. We have over 1,100 staff in 21 major cities across Asia, stretching from Japan to Turkey.

2. About UBM plc (www.ubm.com)
UBM plc is a leading global company. We inform markets and bring the world's buyers and sellers together at events, online, in print and provide them with the information they need to do business successfully. We focus on serving professional commercial communities, from doctors to game developers, from journalists to jewellery traders, and from farmers to pharmacists around the world. Our 6,600 staff in more than 31 countries are organised into specialist teams that serve these communities, helping them to do business effectively and efficiently.

3. About UBM Awards
UBM Awards is UBM plc's awards organiser and producer. Based in London, UBM Awards specialises in end-to-end delivery of cross-sector awards programmes and bespoke events worldwide. UBM Awards organises more than 30 awards and bespoke events annually including the National Business Awards, the Asian Awards and the National Sales Awards.

4. About De Beers
De Beers, established in 1888, is the world's leading rough diamond company with unrivalled expertise in the exploration, mining and marketing of diamonds. Together with its joint venture partners, De Beers employs around 16,000 people across the diamond pipeline, and is the world's largest diamond producer with mining operations across Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Canada.  As part of the company's operating philosophy, the people of De Beers are committed to Living up to Diamonds by making a lasting contribution to the communities in which they live and work. In the countries in which we have mining operations, this means carrying out profitable business, whilst at the same time helping Governments achieve their aspirations of turning natural resources into shared national wealth. De Beers encourages sustainable working to ensure long-term positive development for Africa and, in 2011, returned over US$4 billion to stakeholders in Africa.  For further information about De Beers, visit www.debeersgroup.com.

Please contact:

Jewellery News Asia
UBM Asia (Hong Kong)
+852-2516-1683
[email protected]

Paul Pimlett, Events Director
UBM Awards (UK)
+44 (0) 20-7921-8090
[email protected]

SOURCE UBM Asia Ltd