D an Gertler is a controversial Israeli billionaire who has built a massive fortune primarily through his mining and natural resource deals in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). He began his career as a diamond merchant, leveraging his family's background in the industry. He first went to the DRC in the late 1990s and established a close and highly controversial relationship with the country's political elite, particularly former President Joseph Kabila.

Through these connections, Gertler acquired stakes in some of the DRC's most valuable copper and cobalt mines, often in partnership with the global mining giant Glencore. His business dealings have been the subject of intense scrutiny from international anti-corruption watchdogs and governments. In 2017, the United States imposed sanctions on him and his companies for what it described as 'opaque and corrupt' mining deals in the DRC. Despite the sanctions and the controversy, he remains one of the most powerful and wealthy figures in the global mining industry.