De Beers has today announced its appointment of Gareth Mostyn as Chief Financial Officer. Gareth is currently Group Head of Corporate Finance at Anglo American and will take up his new role at De Beers on 1 February 2012.

The full text of De Beers' announcement is set out below:

The Board of De Beers s.a. announces the appointment of Gareth Mostyn as the company's Chief Financial Officer.  He will report directly to Philippe Mellier, De Beers Group CEO, and be appointed to the Board of De Beers s.a.

A qualified Chartered Accountant, Mr. Mostyn will join De Beers from Anglo American plc, where he has served as Head of Corporate Finance reporting to Finance Director, René Médori.  Mr. Mostyn has been with Anglo American since 2008, prior to which he spent twelve years with The BOC Group plc (latterly a member of The Linde Group), a leading global gas and engineering company.

Mr. Mostyn brings extensive corporate and operational finance experience to De Beers, having played a leading role in a number of Anglo American's major transactions, the company's capital management, and its overall financial strategy.  At an operational level, Mr. Mostyn has worked closely with Anglo American's business units around the world, focusing on major capital projects and organisational alignment, with substantial experience in South Africa.

During his time with Anglo American, Mr. Mostyn developed a good understanding of the De Beers Group, gaining significant exposure to the business through the development of mining projects in southern Africa and Canada, and through De Beers' refinancing process.

Commenting on the appointment, Mr. Mellier said, "I am pleased to be able to add Gareth to De Beers' management team.  He is already familiar with our business, and will bring that knowledge, hands on experience and proven track record to the role.  As CFO, Gareth will be instrumental in sharpening our strategic focus and helping to identify value creating opportunities."

Mr. Mostyn commented, "I am grateful for the confidence placed in me by Philippe and De Beers' shareholders.  This is an exciting time for the diamond business and we have a unique opportunity in front of us to secure De Beers' long-term leadership position in this changing market.  I am thrilled to be joining an iconic company with a strong heritage and incomparable product, and look forward to working with our producer partners, Sightholders and colleagues to build on our shared success."  

Mr. Mostyn will begin in his new role on 1 February 2012 and will be based in London.

Notes to editors:

Anglo American is one of the world's largest mining companies, is headquartered in the UK and listed on the London and Johannesburg stock exchanges. Anglo American's portfolio of mining businesses spans bulk commodities - iron ore and manganese, metallurgical coal and thermal coal; base metals - copper and nickel; and precious metals and minerals - in which it is a global leader in both platinum and diamonds.  Anglo American is committed to the highest standards of safety and responsibility across all its businesses and geographies and to making a sustainable difference in the development of the communities around its operations. The company's mining operations and extensive pipeline of growth projects are located in southern Africa, South America, Australia, North America and Asia. www.angloamerican.com