D avid Nahmad is a Monaco-based billionaire and the patriarch of the Nahmad family, one of the most powerful and secretive art dealing dynasties in the world. Originally from a Syrian Jewish banking family in Aleppo, the family moved to Beirut and then Milan, where they began dealing in art. David, along with his brothers Ezra and Joseph, built the family's business into a dominant force in the international art market.

The Nahmads are famous for their unique strategy of buying art in bulk, particularly at auctions, and then holding the works for years or decades, effectively acting as market makers for certain artists. They are reputed to own one of the world's largest and most valuable private art collections, with a particular focus on Pablo Picasso. A significant portion of their collection is famously stored in a massive, high-security, duty-free warehouse in Geneva, Switzerland. David is also a former world backgammon champion, a game he has applied a similar analytical mindset to.