Last Updated:
Inside Zaveri Bazaar, generations of jewellers and bullion traders still rely on old systems of reputation, handwritten ledgers and trusted couriers to move enormous amounts
News18
In the crowded lanes of South Mumbai’s Zaveri Bazaar, billions of rupees worth of gold and jewellery move through tiny shops and ageing buildings every year.
At first glance, the market feels chaotic. Scooters squeeze through narrow lanes, workers carry sealed packets between workshops and jewellers sit inside cramped stores packed with gold bangles, necklaces and bullion bars. But behind that visible disorder lies one of India’s oldest and most tightly connected trading ecosystems.
According to a detailed report by Rediff, Zaveri Bazaar controls more than 60 percent of India’s gold trade and contains over 7,000 shops packed into the Bhuleshwar-Kalbadevi area of Mumbai. Many of the market’s buildings are over a century old, with some jewellery businesses themselves dating back generations.
Much of the market still functions through traditional trust-based systems that existed long before digital banking.
One of the most important parts of this network is the angadia system, a centuries-old private courier network heavily used by jewellers, bullion traders and diamond merchants.
An article in The Indian Express explained, angadias transport large amounts of cash, diamonds and jewellery between trading centres like Mumbai and Surat using systems based almost entirely on reputation and trust. Traders often continue using the same angadia families for decades.
The system operates with remarkable simplicity. Authenticity is sometimes verified through something as basic as a currency note serial number. A trader handing over money may keep a Rs 10 note and share its serial number with the recipient. Only after the number matches does the courier release the package.
These couriers move astonishing amounts of wealth every day.
The main angadia market directly adjoins Zaveri Bazaar and remains deeply integrated into the gold and diamond economy of Mumbai. A A Moneycontrol investigation found that angadias continue handling cash transfers, precious cargo and business settlements, partly because the jewellery trade still values speed, confidentiality and longstanding personal relationships.
Inside many trading offices, handwritten khata ledgers continue existing alongside computers and GST systems.
Older jewellers still maintain physical records partly because the market’s culture operates heavily on personal credibility rather than formal contracts alone. Reputation in Zaveri Bazaar can take decades to build and minutes to destroy.
The physical infrastructure itself also reflects this old-world ecosystem.
According to Rediff, countless workshops and refining units operate inside old residential-commercial buildings surrounding the market. Hidden storage rooms, private vault spaces and secure lockers are common because traders need to keep gold and diamonds close to the market where prices and deals change rapidly during the trading day.
Some of the market’s best-known firms are themselves more than a century old.
Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri, one of India’s oldest jewellery names, was established in 1864 and grew directly out of this ecosystem of inherited trust networks and family-run bullion trade.
Despite modern banking, digital payments and tighter financial regulations, many parts of Zaveri Bazaar still run on systems that feel surprisingly old-fashioned.
And that may be exactly why the market continues functioning the way it does. Because in one of India’s largest gold economies, technology matters — but trust still matters more.
Read More
