A locally registered company has been named in several global media reports as part of a complex web of offshore entities used by Iran’s new supreme leader.
A Bloomberg investigation into Mojtaba Khamenei says he used offshore companies, including in the island, to buy mansions on Bishop’s Avenue, dubbed “Billionaire’s Row”.
In its investigation, which has now been widely reported on by the UK’s media, Bloomberg linked the island directly to these properties, which it said are owned through a front man called Ali Ansari.
The Mail Online has reported: “The Hampstead properties were bought through a shell company called Birch Ventures Limited, registered in the Isle of Man, whose beneficial owner is Ansari, according to Land Registry and company documents.”
Birch Ventures Limited is registered at an address on Athol Street.
Roger Gherson, a lawyer acting for Ansari, told the Mail: “Mr Ansari vehemently denies any financial relationship with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or the son of the former supreme leader.
“It is his intention to challenge the UK Government’s decision to impose sanctions.”