It’s the early 1950s and West Africa’s growing number of diamond smugglers is causing headaches for De Beers.  Faced with millions of pounds in losses, the diamond monopoly decides it’s time to get tough with the smugglers. But while De Beers battles the illicit diamond traders, in the far east of the Soviet Union a new threat is brewing.  Listen ad-free on Wondery+ here Support us by supporting our sponsors! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s the late 1990s and rebel armies in Angola, Sierra Leone and Congo are bankrolling campaigns of mass murder and terror with diamonds. Now, after years of turning a blind eye, the diamond-buying public is starting to notice the bloodshed.  But as the issue of so-called “blood diamonds” rises up the political agenda, De Beers is plotting what might be the boldest move yet in its long history: giving up its quest to control all the world’s diamonds. Listen ad-free on Wondery+ here Support us by supporting our sponsors! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.