Trade with over 600 members while dealing with a single, trusted settlement counterpart.
Joining Liv-ex gives you access to over 600 fine wine buyers and sellers, yet Liv-ex acts as a single counterpart for all trade, logistics and settlements. This significantly reduces the admin time associated with global trade, affording our members the time to focus on what truly matters – growing their business.
As part of our logistics offering, we not only pick up orders of any size for a low flat-rate, and ship wine globally, we also check the veracity and condition of many wines traded on the exchange. Our dedicated verification team, led by our Authentication Manager Jess Dunn, is continuously improving our processes to avoid the risk of counterfeits.
So, how does Liv-ex reduce risk and provide peace of mind for our members?
For a start, each prospective Liv-ex member undergoes a thorough vetting process; two trade references are required, and an Exchange Committee is in place to assess every prospective member.
When it comes to trading, Liv-ex staff are trained to ask the right questions and dig into the facts to help flag suspicious products. This starts with our brokers, who frequently ask for evidence of provenance when high-risk cases or bottles are offered. For wines of a certain vintage and value, photographs may be requested as a pre-trade check.
Naturally, Liv-ex warehouse staff undergo regular authentication training to ensure they feel confident identifying issues with stock. We have developed a bespoke algorithm to quantify the fraud risk surrounding a wine so the appropriate checks can be conducted. As a result, around 28,000 cases of wine were checked by our warehouse teams in 2024.
When thorough checks are required, we take the bottles out of cases to photograph them. We use ultraviolet torches to check the labels as well as checking them for other producer specific anticounterfeiting measures such as microprint, holograms and QR codes. We inspect capsules, including checking any prooftags. And we also check the cork, sediment and glass embossing or laser etching.
To further enhance security for our members, Liv-ex engages the services of an independent authentication expert who conducts ad-hoc audits of our warehouses and assists in training our staff to spot potential counterfeit bottles.
Our wine storage facilities include state-of-the-art security and climate control systems to ensure wines are protected around the clock. Our storage facilities also have comprehensive security features such as alarms, CCTV, or periodic security patrols.
Our warehouses have 24-hour climate control, humidity control and are free from vibrations and daylight, maintaining the quality of goods for as long as they are stored with us.
Liv-ex is actively improving transparency in the secondary market. We maintain open channels of communication between members of the trade, producers, and authentication experts to reduce the threat of fraud and remain at the forefront of industry efforts to stop counterfeiting.
If you want a more secure and confident approach to trading wine on the secondary market, speak to us about becoming a Liv-ex member.
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