Iran's new leader has an extensive real estate network in Europe

Iran's new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei owns an extensive real estate network in Europe, including apartments near the Israeli embassy in London and a hotel in Frankfurt am Main; the assets are managed by an Iranian banker through a network of fake companies – revealed the portal of the German daily “Die Welt”.

Bloomberg was the first to report about Mojtaba Khamenei's significant foreign assets.

The properties attributed to Iran's new leader include: facilities worth over £100 million in Londonincluding several villas in the northern part of the city, along The Bishops Avenue – one of the most expensive streets in the British capital.

According to Die Welt, two of Khamenei's apartments are particularly interesting. The apartments, worth around £50 million, are located on the sixth and seventh floors of the luxury building in the immediate vicinity of Kensington Palace. Nearby, on a closely guarded private street, there is also the Israeli embassy.

“The apartments are located only 50 meters from the Israeli representative office, which is close enough to observe people entering and leaving, and, according to security experts, perhaps also to eavesdrop on conversations in the area,” it was emphasized.

As the daily noted, none of these properties are registered directly in Khamenei's name. They belong to an extensive network of companies and pillar companies covering Europe and the Caribbean.

He is not formally listed as the owner

The key role in this structure is to be played by Iranian businessman and banker Ali Aliakbar Ansari, founder of Ayandeh Bank. For about 15 years, he was supposed to help build Khamenei's foreign real estate network, ensuring that the current leader of Iran participated in decision-making, but was not formally listed as the owner, noted “Die Welt”.

Some London properties were purchased directly in Ansari's name, including a property on The Bishops Avenue. Others belong to Birch Ventures, a company registered on the British Isle of Man. The Companies House register lists Ansari as the beneficial owner of the company. The network of connections also includes companies registered in Saint Kitts and Nevis and the United Arab Emirates.

Die Welt also recalled that the British Foreign Office had imposed sanctions on Ansari. According to the British authorities, it was intended to support the activities of the Iranian government and provide economic resources to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other entities trying to destabilize Great Britain.

Due to the sanctions, Ansari's assets in the UK were frozen. He is also banned from entering the country and running a business. Ansari also denied any financial or personal ties to Khamenei and announced he would appeal against the sanctions.

The Financial Times found that Ansari, through a network of offshore companies, is the owner of, among others, two Hilton hotel buildings in Frankfurt am Main – in the city center and in the Gravenbruch district. It will also own the Bero shopping center in Oberhausen, a luxury golf resort in Majorca and a ski hotel in Austria.

According to the anti-corruption network Transparency International, the value of investments in the UK by people who may be linked to the Iranian regime exceeds £200 million. Available data shows that the largest share in these assets is held by the network associated with Ansari.

From Munich Iwona Weidmann (PAP)

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