A 10.03 carat blue diamond has sold at auction in Geneva for $21.5 million (CHF18 million). +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox The "Mediterranean Blue", which was estimated to be worth $20 million, "attracted enormous interest" at the sale, Sotheby's said. But Tobias Kormind, director of 77 Diamonds, Europe's largest online jeweller, said the sale was "less impressive" than expected. "The diamond exceeded its $20 million estimate, which suggests significant interest. But general uncertainty, including trade tensions between the US and China, may have dampened bidder confidence," he observed. A battle between two bidders started at CHF9 million and lasted "almost three minutes". A private American collector won the precious stone, the auction house said, without identifying the bidder. Flagship stone "This is undoubtedly the flagship stone of the season and ranks among the best blue diamonds we have sold," said Quig Bruning, head of Sotheby's North America ...
