Years of Western sanctions haven’t prevented money flows out of Tehran: ‘They probably learned from the Russian oligarchs’
On a leafy residential stretch of North London dubbed Billionaires’ Row, Saudi royals and wealthy Russians have long come shopping for high-end real estate. The Iranians were a more surprising addition to the neighborhood.
Several sprawling mansion plots along the thoroughfare more formally known as The Bishops Avenue make up a chunk of the extensive London property holdings funded by Iranian money that Western officials have linked to the country’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Iranian banker Ali Ansari acquired the Bishops Avenue plots and other nearby property in 2018 for around 90 million pounds, equivalent to around $120 million today, according to people familiar with the deal. The transaction took place offshore through an entity registered in the Isle of Man, the people said.
