Dan Gertler back in spotlight as Vanity Fair revisits Congo

A new Vanity Fair feature has renewed attention on Israeli billionaire Dan Gertler, tracing his rise in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s mining sector and reviving long running questions about how cobalt wealth was captured during the country’s post war years.

The article, adapted from journalist Nicolas Niarchos’ 2026 book, describes Gertler as a central figure in Congo’s diamonds, copper and cobalt trade over two decades, and links his influence to close ties with former Congolese President Joseph Kabila and his late father Laurent Desire Kabila. Vanity Fair says Gertler built a powerful network of mining deals as global interest in Congo’s mineral reserves accelerated.

The feature lands at a time when cobalt has become even more strategically important because of its role in batteries, defense supply chains and industrial manufacturing. Congo remains the world’s dominant source of mined cobalt and continues to sit at the center of global supply concerns.

Gertler has long denied wrongdoing and has described himself in past legal and public responses as a legitimate businessman. His business empire, built through Dan Gertler International and related entities, made him one of the most prominent foreign investors tied to Congo’s natural resources sector. Public profiles and prior investigations have linked him to major transactions involving mining licenses and commodity assets.

The United States sanctioned Gertler in 2017 under the Global Magnitsky framework, and later expanded sanctions to entities linked to him. U.S. authorities accused him of building his fortune through opaque and corrupt mining and oil deals in Congo and of using his relationship with Kabila to act as a middleman in mining asset sales.

The sanctions and later debates over waivers and enforcement turned Gertler into a symbol of a larger struggle over Congo’s mineral wealth, where anti corruption groups, governments and mining companies have clashed over access, transparency and state revenue. The issue has only grown more sensitive as cobalt demand became tied to electric vehicles and clean energy supply chains.

Vanity Fair’s retelling is likely to resonate beyond media circles because it arrives during a fresh geopolitical contest over critical minerals. Western governments are trying to reduce supply chain vulnerabilities, while China remains deeply entrenched in Congo linked cobalt processing and trade. Congo itself has moved to assert more control over exports and pricing in recent years.

The renewed focus on Gertler also underscores a familiar reality in African extractives. Even when legal cases and sanctions shift, the political and commercial structures built around major resource deals can outlast headlines. In Congo, where cobalt remains central to the global energy transition, that legacy still shapes who profits, who negotiates and who holds leverage.