09/02/2026

BIZ & FINANCE MONDAY | FEB 9, 2026

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JOHANNESBURG: Even with its legendary image of glitz and glamour, diamond icon De Beers has struggled to attract a buyer after nearly two years on a market dulled by falling prices and the allure of lab-grown gems. The seller, mining titan Anglo American, even warned on Thursday it may take a third writedown in as many years on the company that was born in South Africa 130 years ago and went on to dominate the global diamond market. This is after a US$2.9 billion drop last year and US$1.6 billion charge the year before, bringing its estimated value to about US$5 billion, according to company records. Anglo’s bid to offload its loss-making company is not only being thwarted by the depressed market for mined diamonds, particularly in China, according to analysts. It is also complicated by a crowded field of suitors circling the sale, including at least three sub-Saharan governments and various private bidders, which makes any deal as political as it is financial, they added.

Anglo American struggles to sell De Beers

Virkkunen said her priority was to make platforms safe for all users, children included. “Social media should be so safe by design that we shouldn’t have that kind of very high age restriction,” she said. If the regulator’s views on TikTok are confirmed, the commission can impose a fine of up to 6% of the company’s total worldwide annual turnover. The EU began a separate probe into TikTok in December 2024 on alleged foreign interference during the Romanian presidential elections. EU spokesman Regnier said earlier last week that TikTok was “extremely cooperative” during that investigation and was taking measures to address the commission’s concerns. He added that while the probe remained open, regulators could monitor how TikTok behaves during other elections. – AFP “It is pertinent to have some private money involved as well as executives with relevant experience,” said the US-based analyst. Anglo American has kept details of the sale negotiations under wraps, with chief executive Duncan Wanblad saying on Thursday only that the separation is “progressing”. The mining giant announced in 2024 – after fending off a hostile takeover bid from Australian rival BHP – that it would sell off De Beers and its coal and nickel operations in order to focus on iron ore and copper. “De Beers isn’t a single, clean asset, it spans mining, marketing, and retail, and it includes a government partner,” leading diamond industry analyst Edahn Golan told AFP. “From a buyer’s perspective, this is actually an attractive moment to step in. From a seller’s perspective, there’s a compelling argument for waiting until the market improves and capturing more of the upside,” he said. Demand for natural diamonds has weakened as younger buyers spend less on traditional jewellery and are drawn to cheaper lab-grown gems. US tariffs and shifting trade routes are meanwhile disrupting flows through key cutting and polishing hubs. As the sector weathers a period of unprecedented uncertainty, retailers and manufacturers are sitting on their biggest polished stone stockpiles in years. Despite the gloomy market, Anglo would not be “interested in fire-selling” De Beers, Zimnisky said. “They can be patient,” he added. Golan agreed. “My hope is that the outcome is a company that both brings prosperity to the communities in which it operates and succeeds in rebuilding consumer interest in diamonds,” he said. – AFP

o Bid to offload company thwarted by depressed diamond market Botswana has perhaps been the most ardent in its ambition to acquire a controlling stake in the company that oversees the world trade in the stones on which its economy depends. chief executive Gareth Penny. It is a complicated sale that – if it goes through – would mark one of the most significant shifts in the diamond industry in a quarter of a century, said independent analyst Paul Zimnisky.

more of the value chain and secure its economic future. But the International Monetary Fund has cautioned the mostly desert nation that concentrating more of its state resources in the diamond sector could heighten fiscal risks and leave it more exposed to swings in global demand. Zimnisky was also wary of what could amount to the “nationalisation” of De Beers. “In general, I think that a more private or capitalistic business model works better than a more government run or social one,” he told AFP.

Botswana and its president, Duma Boko, De Beers’ biggest producer partner with a 15% holding, led a determined push to finalise a deal by last year but to no avail. Other diamond-rich governments such as Angola and Namibia have also signalled interest, as have various sovereign wealth funds and a consortium led by former De Beers

“The new owner will be in a position to fundamentally pave the future of the entire industry, for better or worse,” the diamond industry analyst told AFP. Botswana’s bid underscores its belief that it must manage the resource, which contributes about a third of its GDP, in order to capture

A general view of haul trucks carrying ore of the open pit of the Jwaneng Diamond Mine in Jwaneng, Botswana. – AFPPIC

European Union tells TikTok to change ‘addictive’ design BRUSSELS: The EU said last week that TikTok needs to change its “addictive design” or risk heavy fines under the bloc’s digital content rules, drawing a sharp pushback from the Chinese-owned platform. place are simply not enough.” TikTok rejected the commission’s findings, with a spokesperson saying it presented “a categorically false and entirely meritless depiction of our platform”. told reporters that “TikTok has to take actions, they have to change the design of their service in Europe to protect our minors and their wellbeing”. platform after midnight by children between 13 and 18, he said, with 7% of children aged 12 to 15 spending four to five hours daily on it.

Brussels accused TikTok of disregarding “important indicators of compulsive use of the app” such as the time minors spent on the platform at night. It also said TikTok had not implemented effective measures to mitigate risks, taking particular aim at screen time management and parental control tools. Its time management tools were “easy to dismiss” including for young users, the commission found, while parental controls required “additional time and skills from parents to introduce” them. The findings come as several European countries move to curb access to social media for younger teenagers, with officials weighing whether it is time to follow suit at EU level. Briefing reporters on Friday,

The commission gave examples of what the platform could alter, such as: • the platform’s “infinite scroll” offering users an uninterrupted feed • implementing effective “screen time breaks”, including during the night • adapting its recommender system, the algorithms used by platforms to feed users more personalised content. The February 2024 investigation was the first opened into TikTok under the DSA, the bloc’s powerful content moderation law that has faced the wrath of the US administration under President Donald Trump. In presenting the probe findings, Regnier cited what he called “extremely alarming” statistics on the app’s use in the EU. TikTok was “by far” the most-used

In preliminary conclusions of a probe opened two years ago, the European Commission said it found TikTok was not taking effective steps to address the app’s negative impacts, especially on minors and vulnerable adults. “TikTok’s addictive design is in breach of the Digital Services Act (DSA),” said commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier, citing concerns with features such as infinite scroll, autoplay, push notifications, and a highly personalised recommender system. “These features lead to the compulsive use of the app, especially for our kids, and this poses major risks to their mental health and wellbeing,” Regnier said. “The measures that TikTok has in

“We will take whatever steps are necessary to challenge these findings through every means available to us,” the company added in a statement. Allies of US President Donald Trump in the American Congress said the European Commission’s “punitive actions” were a pretext for curbing political speech and pressuring companies. The DSA is part of a bolstered legal armoury adopted by the EU in recent years to curb Big Tech’s excesses, and officials had until now said TikTok was cooperating with the bloc’s digital regulators. TikTok will now have access to the EU’s findings in order to defend itself against the claims. EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen