Briefing Summary

International Networks Supporting the Regime in Tehran

As military action across the Middle East continues to intensify, a more complex and less visible layer of risk is emerging alongside the visible pressures of sanctions and supply chain disruption. Iran's extensive proxy network of financiers and intermediaries - extending across the region and into global financial centres is actively moving funds - acquiring assets, and embedding illicit activity within routine commercial flows. The boundary between compliant and suspicious transactions is becoming increasingly blurred. This briefing is designed to help organisations understand that threat and what it means for them.

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What's inside

• An assessment of the scale of Iranian shadow banking and IRGC-linked financial networks - including $9 billion in shadow banking activity identified in a single year, a $7.78 billion crypto ecosystem, and over £200 million of regime-linked property in London alone
• A detailed examination of corporate concealment as the key risk - how Iranian-linked front companies operating through Gulf financial hubs appear legitimate on the surface while facilitating sanctions evasion, illicit oil trade, and weapons procurement behind the scenes
• Two in-depth case studies: the hidden property network of Ali Ansari, the Supreme Leader's banker, with over €400 million in European real estate held through layered offshore structures, and the Houses of the Ayatollah - luxury London properties linked to the new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei through Ansari's network
• An examination of the German connection - why over half of Ansari's portfolio was Germany-based, and how Iran continues to access European industrial markets through complex ownership structures and intermediary firms
• A breakdown of oil smuggling as a core laundering mechanism, including the February 2026 US Treasury designations targeting Iran's shadow fleet of tankers moving hundreds of millions in sanctioned petroleum products
• An analysis of emerging cryptocurrency tactics - how IRGC proxy networks are increasingly using digital assets to move funds, sustain militia activity, and procure dual-use equipment, including scrutiny of major exchanges
• Practical guidance on preparing for a more uncertain risk environment - from beneficial ownership mapping and corporate concealment detection to AI-driven tools for identifying network-based risk