A £150m diamond hoard backed the pitch to investors — liquidators found £100,000 of stones

Diamond Manufacturers Ltd, trading as Vashi, was a London-founded direct-to-consumer diamond and jewellery retailer built by founder Vashi Dominguez from 2007. Dominguez raised outside investment — including from high-profile backers such as Pret A Manger's former CEO Clive Schlee, ICAP founder Lord Spencer and Phones 4u billionaire John Caudwell — partly by pointing to a diamond stockpile he said was worth more than £150 million, offered as security investors could fall back on if the retail business underperformed.

The company's own internal sales figures for 2020 and 2021 were roughly £5.4 million and £5.1 million; the accounts it filed with Companies House for those same years claimed £53.6 million and £105.4 million — figures investors relied on when deciding to put more money in. Former staff later told reporters that stores had few customers on an ordinary day and that they were told to pose as shoppers to make the floor look busy.

The company was wound up and liquidators from Teneo appointed on April 4, 2023. When the safes were opened, the diamond stock actually on hand was valued at roughly £100,000 to £114,000 — a small fraction of the sum used to attract investment. The liquidation left unsecured creditors, including investors, with claims totalling around £170 million.