Amid the economic crisis and the collapse of public trust, a set of regulatory documents, media investigations, and statements from judicial officials indicate that four powerful families of the Islamic Republic 'Fallahian, Alavi, Rezaei, and Shamkhani' are at the center of a network that has siphoned billions of dollars of Iran's oil money out of the official cycle. This network, referred to as 'Oil Trustees' and known in security sources as 'Shayan's Circle', has now become one of the largest corruption cases in the history of Iran's oil industry, a network whose trail stretches from Tehran and Khuzestan to Dubai, Singapore, and Europe, showing how the children and sons-in-law of security officials, using cover companies, shadow fleets, and foreign exchanges, sold Iran's oil and did not return a large portion of the revenue.
Four Families, Four Trustees; The Map of Power in Iran's Oil Trade
New investigations show that four key names are at the center of this network: Mohsen Fallahian (son of Ali Fallahian), Ehsan Sokhaei (son-in-law of Mahmoud Alavi), Ali Rezaei (son of Mohsen Rezaei), and Hossein Shamkhani (son of Ali Shamkhani) Each of these individuals has played the role of an oil intermediary or 'trustee' in a separate branch, a role that, under sanctions, allows them access to oil shipments, foreign accounts, and money transfer networks.
Mohsen Fallahian; From the Ministry of Intelligence to Oil Cryptocurrencies
In one case, informed sources have said ۲۰۰ million dirhams of this network's oil money was transferred via cryptocurrency, a method used in recent years to conceal the money trail and circumvent banking oversight.
This branch shows how the children of security officials from the 1990s have now become central to the sanctioned oil trade.
Ehsan Sokhaei; The Son-in-law of the Minister of Intelligence and the Kamco Case
Ehsan Sokhaei, son-in-law of Mahmoud Alavi, has been introduced as another trustee of Shayan's network. His name had previously been mentioned in the Kamco case and the forgiveness of debts related to Abdullah Dastgheib, a case reflected in a Tasnim report from the Bank Mellat court in ۱۳۹۸ . This background shows that Sokhaei was involved in the structure of cover companies and oil product transactions before the current wave of trustees and now plays a key role in Shayan's circle.
Ali Rezaei; Dubai Oil Trader and the IRGC Circle
Ali Rezaei, son of Mohsen Rezaei, has been introduced in reports by Iran International and Independent Persian as an oil trader in Dubai.
Sources say he has been involved in the oil transactions of Shayan's network and has not returned significant amounts of oil sale proceeds.
His presence in this case indicates a structural link between the IRGC's economic circles and oil sales networks.
Hossein Shamkhani; The Backbone of the Shadow Fleet
Among the four branches, Hossein Shamkhani is the only individual against whom there are official international documents. The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned more than ۲۰۰ companies, individuals, and ships related to his shipping network in ۲۰۲۵ and ۲۰۲۶.
Bloomberg and Euronews have reported that companies related to him in Dubai, including Millavous Group and Ocean Leonid Investments have faced action from DIFC . The U.S. Department of Justice has also investigated the banking network and the transfer of billions of dollars related to companies under his control. His name appears alongside Ali Bayandrian, Rouhollah Razavi, and Mohammad Hadi Momenin as the four major trustees receiving oil shipments.
۸۶ Million Barrels of Oil; The Heart of the Trustees' Case
According to a document published by Iran International, ۸۶ million barrels of oil were entrusted to four indebted trustees. Mohammad Hadi Momenin, born in ۱۳۶۸, has been introduced as the most important economic figure in this network.
His name appears in ۴۳ companies, and according to the official list of major bank debtors, he owes ۷۴۳ billion tomans to Karafarin Bank. He has not returned two billion dollars of oil money. Rouhollah Razavi has also kept more than one billion dollars and has provided information about competitors to security agencies.
Estimates have announced the total unreturned money from various trustee networks to be up to ۱۱۰ billion dollars. If this figure is taken as a basis, at least ۲۱ million tomans have been stolen from the pocket of every Iranian. Even considering these confirmed figures, i.e., ۱۱ billion dollars from Shayan's network, minus the multi-billion-dollar debts of the trustees and dozens of legal cases, it shows an unprecedented structural corruption dimension in Iran's oil trade.
The trustees' case clearly shows that oil corruption in Iran is not an isolated phenomenon; rather, it is the product of a political-security structure where the children and relatives of officials, using cover companies, shadow fleets, and foreign exchanges, have taken billions of dollars out of the country's assets.
As long as these networks remain unaccountable from Khuzestan to Dubai and Singapore, no economic reform in Iran will be possible.