Joseph Nasi rose from the world of Portuguese converso commerce to prominence at the Ottoman court. His family networks connected Antwerp, Venice, Istanbul, and other centers of Mediterranean trade. Within the empire, he became involved in diplomacy, intelligence, taxation, and political projects, eventually receiving the title Duke of Naxos. His influence should not be romanticized as unrestricted power; it depended upon court patronage and shifting imperial politics. Nasi’s career nevertheless shows how commercial knowledge, multilingual contacts, and refugee experience could become valuable political assets within the Ottoman Mediterranean.