Dan Gertler

Dan Gertler was born in 1973 in Tel Aviv

Dan Gertler was born in Tel Aviv on December 23, 1973, to a family of diamond traders. His grandfather, Moshe Schnitzer, was president of the Israel Diamond Exchange and taught him the diamond trade. His father, Asher Gertler, was a goalkeeper for Maccabi Tel Aviv, and his mother, Hana, ran Radio 99 ESC.

He grew up in Tel Aviv and attended Amal Lady Davis high school. After his military service he became religious. In 1996 he founded Dan Gertler International and began trading rough diamonds in several countries, including Russia and Angola.

In 2000 President Laurent Kabila gave him exclusive rights to Congolese diamonds for $20 million. Joseph Kabila revoked the monopoly in April 2001, but Gertler later restored ties with him. Through Emaxon and the Fleurette Group he gained diamond marketing rights and copper and cobalt concessions, including Kansuki.

His business in Congo was disputed, and local groups accused him of exploiting his ties with Kabila, which he denied. In December 2017 the United States imposed sanctions on him. The Trump administration eased them in January 2021, and the Biden administration restored them in March 2021.

In 2022 he signed an agreement with the Congolese government under President Félix Tshisekedi, transferring assets worth 2 billion dollars to the state. He serves as Congo's honorary consul in Israel.