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Tehran. The Bishops Avenue, located in northern London, is known as Billionaires’ Row. Many luxurious mansions lie vacant. Hidden behind blacked-out windows and high fences, these buildings are guarded by private guards. According to a Bloomberg report, the ownership of these mansions is linked through a complex network to one of Iran’s most powerful figures, Mojtaba Khamenei. 56-year-old Mojtaba is the second son of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and is considered a potential successor to his father.

Mojtaba Khamenei’s ‘Secret’ Empire
According to Western intelligence agencies and those familiar with the matter, Mojtaba Khamenei oversees a vast investment empire.
Net worth: Reports estimate his wealth at more than £100 million (about $138 million).
Scope: The network stretches from Tehran to Dubai, Frankfurt (Germany), and London. It includes shipping in the Persian Gulf, Swiss bank accounts, and British luxury properties. Mojtaba never holds his assets in his own name. Instead, he uses shell companies and intermediaries.

‘Money Man’ Ali Ansari: The key pawn
At the centre of this entire network is an Iranian businessman named Ali Ansari.

Who is Ali Ansari?: Ansari is a construction magnate who built Iran’s luxury Mall of Iran and owned the now-defunct Ayatollah Bank. Documents reviewed by Bloomberg do not show Mojtaba’s name on any of the assets. Most of the assets are in Ali Ansari’s name. The UK also imposed sanctions on Ansari in October. Ansari and Mojtaba’s ties date back to the Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s. Ansari is believed to be a frontman or main account holder for Mojtaba.

The report details how money flow and sanctions violations
were carried out despite stringent US and international sanctions on Iran. The primary source of this funding was Iranian oil sales. The money was routed through banks in the UK, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the UAE, using shell companies (such as ‘Ziba Leisure Limited’, registered in St. Kitts and Nevis). Ansari obtained a Cypriot passport in 2016, which allowed him to open bank accounts in Europe and conceal his Iranian identity.

Oil, shell companies and offshore accounts
A Bloomberg investigation revealed that the network moved money through companies registered in St. Kitts and Nevis, the Isle of Man and the UAE.

For example:
Ziba Leisure Limited
Birch Ventures Limited
A&A Leisure Limited
Midas Oil Industries
Through these companies, money from Iranian oil was sent to foreign banks.

A false simplicity and a true affluence
Iran’s state media portrays the Supreme Leader and his family as pious, religious, and living a very simple life. They talk about the values ​​of the 1979 revolution, which was for the poor. The reality is the opposite. Mojtaba’s hidden wealth stands in stark contrast to this image.

Aghazadeh: In Iran, this term is used as a derogatory term for the children of elites who exploit their family’s political influence to become wealthy through corruption. Mojtaba’s wealth could further fuel anger, especially as ordinary Iranians struggle with poverty and inflation.

Key assets
The report mentions some specific assets:
London: Several mansions on Bishops Avenue. One house was purchased in 2014 for £33.7 million.
Dubai: A villa in what has been called the Beverly Hills of Dubai.
Frankfurt (Germany): The Hilton Frankfurt Gravenbrücke Hotel. Although Hilton only manages it, ownership is reportedly held by companies linked to the network.
Mallorca (Spain): Evidence of investment in luxury hotels has also been found here.

This revelation comes at a time when:
Succession battle: Debate is raging over who will succeed 86-year-old Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as the next Supreme Leader. Mojtaba is a strong contender, but this corruption could damage his image.
Weakening Iran: Iran has been strategically weakened by sanctions, Israeli/US military strikes, and the Gaza conflict.
Donald Trump’s return: The report notes that economic pressures will intensify after Donald Trump returns to power in 2025.

This investigation reveals how influential individuals and their cronies exploit flaws in the global financial system to circumvent sanctions. Real estate in cities like London and Frankfurt is being used as safe deposit boxes. Following UK sanctions against Ali Ansari, it remains to be seen whether this network will hastily sell its European assets.