# Store of Value Precious stones, like precious metals, have been a good store of value for centuries. A rare and fine gemstone represents an excellent and highly portable repository of value. As the affluent and prudent have always understood, gems act as a hard asset, noncorrelating hedge against crisis, financial repression, inflation and the vagaries of fiat currencies. This concept is bearing itself out in the market - international collectors, private placements, and investors have pushed coloured diamonds and coloured gemstones to record highs at each major auction since the recession in 2009 (Source: Sotheby’s and Christie’s). Most recently, Sotheby’s in 2021 recorded the sale of the second largest pear-shaped diamond to appear on the market, which sold for $12.3 million – the highest price for any jewellery or gemstone purchased with cryptocurrency. Precious metals group Gemfields recorded its best-ever gemstone auctions in 2021. Most recently, the group, which mines in Zambia, and Mozambique, held a series of ruby auctions that brought in a record $88.4m of revenue. It was the best-ever set of earnings from ruby auctions. Expanding urbanization, changing lifestyles, growing e-commerce sales, the rising presence of organized retail channels, the growing number of premium product launches and synchronized distribution networks, etc., are projected to drive the global gems & jewellery market. Advancements in the jewellery-making process, along with the continued emergence of Asia-Pacific as the fastest growing market across the globe, have driven high demand as rising disposable income, and aggressive marketing and promotional strategies by leading players have energized the market. Demand for gold, platinum, gemstones, and pearl jewellery has always been high regardless of prices, globally. High-quality gemstones are part of a niche market, which is less likely to be affected by economic developments. --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://wp.fix00.com/fix00-white-paper/overview/store-of-value.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.