Iran Revives Shadow Networks to Evade Trump's Toughest Sanctions Yet

The Trump administration has imposed what it calls "economic D-Day" sanctions on Iran, targeting the country's oil revenues, banking system, gold reserves, shipping networks, aviation sector, and certain technology industries. The stated aim is to force Iran's leadership toward submission through economic pressure where military action since February has not succeeded. But Iran has spent decades building something the sanctions are designed to dismantle: a vast, opaque network of businesspeople and shell companies spread across multiple countries, designed specifically to move money and goods around international restrictions.

At the center of this network stands Babak Zanjani, a 53-year-old billionaire who was released from prison last year after serving time for one of Iran's largest corruption cases. In 2016, authorities accused Zanjani of failing to return approximately $2.6 billion in oil revenues to the Iranian state. He was sentenced to death, spent years disputing the charges and negotiating with Iranian officials, and was eventually released in 2025. Within months, he had returned to business, signing a multibillion-dollar contract with Iran's state railway operator through one of his companies. In July 2026, just one day before the United States announced expanded sanctions targeting him and his associates, Zanjani opened a café and pastry shop in western Tehran and attended its launch celebration. Authorities shut the business down the following day.

Zanjani's rise began roughly three decades ago, according to reports, when he worked as a driver for Iran's central bank governor during his military service. That position gave him access to influential circles and business contacts that would eventually allow him to build an empire of around 60 companies operating across Malaysia, Tajikistan, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates. During the presidency of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Zanjani reportedly used this network to sell billions of barrels of Iranian oil on the black market while simultaneously importing goods—including aircraft—into Iran. Many of his firms were later sanctioned by the United States, but the network's complexity and reach made it difficult to fully dismantle.

The system Zanjani operated within extends far beyond any single businessman. It is a web of companies, financial channels, and personal relationships built over decades to help Iran navigate sanctions. Individuals within these networks receive support and protection from powerful figures inside Iran's government and military establishment. In return, they are understood to share portions of their profits with their patrons. Behzad Ahmadinia, an Iran-born journalist based in Cyprus who covers the oil and energy sector, observed that the regime appears willing to set aside internal rivalries and rely on professionals and experts who can operate more efficiently than others and occupy key positions in the economy.

Iran is now turning to cryptocurrencies as part of its evasion strategy. Digital currencies like bitcoin operate outside the traditional banking system and dollar-based financial networks, making them attractive for money transfers, trade transactions, and increasingly for oil-related business. According to the Fars News Agency, which is close to Iran's Revolutionary Guards, Zanjani has proposed using cryptocurrencies to secure oil shipments passing through the Strait of Hormuz. The United States has responded by focusing more of its sanctions enforcement on digital currency transactions, recognizing them as an emerging vulnerability in its ability to restrict Iran's access to global markets.

A crucial insight into how these networks function came from the case of Reza Zarrab, a Turkish-Iranian businessman who was arrested in the United States in 2016 while on vacation. Zarrab was accused of money laundering and violating US sanctions on Iran. He had built an extensive network in Turkey and possessed detailed knowledge of the financial and trading mechanisms Iran used to bypass restrictions. His cooperation with US investigators provided Washington with valuable intelligence about how sanctions evasion actually works on the ground—the specific routes, the intermediaries, the financial instruments. That knowledge has allowed the United States to target these networks more effectively. Zarrab was eventually released from custody and, according to reports, now lives in the United States under a new identity.

Corruption and lack of transparency are structural features of Iran's political and economic system. Transparency International's 2025 Corruption Perceptions Index gave Iran a score of 23 out of 100 and ranked it 153rd out of 182 countries, indicating very high perceived levels of public-sector corruption. Jamshid Assadi, a France-based economist, noted that people like Zarrab and Zanjani are cultivated within this system and maintain connections to different centers of power, making them valuable assets when the regime faces economic pressure.

The central question now is whether the latest US sanctions can actually reach and disable the networks underpinning Iran's shadow economy. According to Assadi, many traditional sanctions evasion routes are now well known and increasingly difficult for Tehran to use. The United States has warned numerous countries that their companies, banks, and private-sector actors could face penalties if they help Iran bypass restrictions. Yet Iran has spent decades adapting to economic pressure and finding new pathways around it. The return of Zanjani to prominence suggests that Tehran is once again betting on the businessmen who have successfully weathered previous periods of isolation. Whether Washington's expanded sanctions will significantly weaken those networks, or whether Iran will simply develop new methods faster than the United States can counter them, remains an open question.