A new investigation from Iran International reveals the Shayan Network, an operation allegedly tied to Iran's Intelligence Ministry, exporting millions of barrels of sanctioned crude even as its own members still owe billions from earlier deals. The findings expose a recurring weakness in Tehran's sanctions-evasion machinery.
A previously unknown oil-trading operation tied to Iran's Intelligence Ministry has been exporting millions of barrels of sanctioned crude, according to documents obtained by Iran International and sources inside Iran's Oil Ministry. The network's own participants reportedly still owe billions of dollars from prior sales, raising the question of why Tehran keeps relying on the same intermediaries.
How the network moves crude
Iran routes sanctioned crude oil through front companies and intermediaries in the UAE, Hong Kong, and China to reach buyers, mostly in China, and the Shayan Network follows that same playbook. So-called "trustee" middlemen handle logistics from Iranian ports to end buyers, using shadow-fleet tactics such as ship-to-ship transfers at sea to obscure the cargo's origin.
But these trustees have a track record of failing to fully return the money, and Shayan Network members reportedly still owe billions from earlier transactions. This isn't the first time Tehran's intermediaries have cost it money. Businessman Babak Zanjani served as one of Iran's most prominent oil middlemen until individual unreturned-revenue cases exceeded $200 million; an Iranian court sentenced him to death, and the money was never fully recovered.
A parallel Treasury target
The US Treasury has separately sanctioned dozens of entities and vessels tied to what officials call the Shamkhani network, an overlapping operation moving crude and liquefied petroleum gas.
Discounted barrels still find buyers
Iranian crude trades at a significant discount to international benchmarks because of the legal and logistical risk buyers take on. Chinese independent refiners, known as "teapots," remain the most willing buyers of that discounted crude, effectively placing a floor under Iran's export volumes — though even they face periodic disruptions when their intermediaries or banking channels get caught up in US sanctions designations.
The Shayan Network's exposure highlights a structural weakness in Iran's sanctions-evasion model: when oil sales depend on intermediaries who routinely fail to return billions in revenue, Tehran loses money not only to sanctions but to the people meant to help it dodge them.
Source: Crypto Briefing
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