Qatar Free Zones Authority launches Qatar Diamond Exchange at Ras Bufontas

The Qatar Free Zones Authority has launched the Qatar Diamond Exchange at the Ras Bufontas Free Zone, a fully integrated trading platform for rough and polished diamonds, gemstones and precious stones. The exchange is designed to host international traders, cutters, polishers and certification services in a single regulated environment, and QFZA has presented it as a step toward establishing Doha as a new gateway for the global diamond trade.

Ras Bufontas sits directly adjacent to Hamad International Airport, one of the busiest air cargo hubs in the region, which matters for a commodity that moves almost exclusively by air and depends on secure, fast, high-value logistics. That proximity is the core of the site's pitch: goods can move between aircraft and vault within the free zone perimeter. Companies operating in QFZA's zones benefit from 100 percent foreign ownership, full repatriation of profits, exemption from corporate tax for an extended period, and no customs duties on goods entering or leaving the zone.

The Qatar Free Zones Authority was established in 2018 and operates two zones: Ras Bufontas, next to the airport, and Umm Alhoul, next to Hamad Port in the south. Between them they have attracted logistics, aviation services, pharmaceuticals, technology and advanced manufacturing tenants. The diamond exchange extends that portfolio into high-value commodities trading, a sector where the established centres are Antwerp, Mumbai, Tel Aviv, New York and, in the Gulf, Dubai.

The launch fits the diversification agenda set out in Qatar National Vision 2030 and the country's national development strategy, which target growth in non-hydrocarbon sectors and in Qatar's role as a re-export and trading hub. Building a credible diamond trading centre requires more than infrastructure — it depends on custody, valuation, insurance, dispute resolution and compliance with international provenance rules governing rough stone origin, all of which will determine whether the exchange attracts sustained volume.