Nasser Khalili is an Iranian-born world-renowned scholar, collector and philanthropist based in London with an estimated net worth of $1 billion as of March 2013. According to Forbes, he is the 36th richest person in the United Kingdom and 1342nd in the world.

Nasser David Khalili was born on December 18, 1945 in Esfahan, Iran. Currently based in London, he holds United Kingdom citizenship and is often referred to as the “cultural ambassador of Islams” by the leaders of the Muslim countries. He is also nicknamed the secret sultan.

Professor Khalili is a former art dealer and is best known for owning one of the world’s largest private collections of Islamic arts. He has more than 20,000 pieces with the oldest one spanning for 1,400 years. His art collection includes rare Koranic manuscripts, paintings, ceramics, glass, and textiles. The first art piece he purchased when he was a teenager was a 19th century Qajar lacquer pen box.

Nasser Khalili is also a collector of Japanese art from the Meiji period, Indian and Swedish textiles, and Spanish metal works. Under the Khalili Family Trust, he has collected eight of the world’s finest and most comprehensive art collections: The Arts of the Islamic World (700-2000), Japanese Art of the Meiji Period (1868-1912), Three Hundred Years of Japanese Kimono (1700-2000), Swedish Textiles (1700-1900), Spanish Damascened Metalwork (1850-1900), Enamels of the World (1700-2000), Aramaic and Bactrian documents (400 BC - AD 700) and hajj and the arts of the pilgrimage.

Aside from his art collections, Khalili also owns commercial and retail properties in and around London including in the Tony Mayfair. Currently, he is reportedly building an energy-efficient office block dubbed as “The Wave.” As a philanthropist, he is the co-founder and chairman of the Maimonides Foundation, a charity that promotes interfaith peace and understanding.