From Pasargad Bank to Kaleh and Mihan: Meet Iran’s Five Major Rent-Seeking Giants
From Pasargad Bank to Kaleh and Mihan: Meet Iran’s Five Major Rent-Seeking Giants. According to Iran Gate, details have recently been released about the amount of loans given by several large holdings to their subsidiaries, as well as the large-scale rents they have benefited from. This list, which includes eight major groups in the country, features well-known names such as Pasargad Bank, Mihan Dairy Products, Minu Food Products, Kaleh, and Modarres Group.
A report recently published by the Ham-Mihan newspaper about the widespread distribution of rent among eight major companies in Iran was removed from the media’s website on Tuesday morning, November 15, 2022. This report, which described the extent of unusual loans and the receipt of preferential currency on a very large scale, indicated that some holdings close to the government have benefited from rents enabled by sanctions.
In this report, Iran Gate examined five main companies that have allocated large sums and attempted to introduce them.
Pasargad Bank
Pasargad Bank has been one of the most enigmatic economic entities in Iran, enjoying a peculiar kind of managerial and functional stability. This private bank, currently recognized as one of the country’s most successful banks, has always faced suspicions surrounding its management team.
At times, information about the subsidiaries of this bank has been released, with one of the most significant details being the allocation of large loans to them by the parent bank. In other words, Pasargad Bank has created numerous subsidiaries that have continuously received loans over the years.
Now, published reports indicate that Pasargad Bank has provided 163 trillion tomans in loans to its subsidiaries. Essentially, Pasargad has used this trick to return the money that should have been available to real customers back into its own pockets. It is now unclear in what direction these funds have been spent and why the Central Bank’s regulatory bodies have not intervened in this case, which is a clear violation of banking laws.
Furthermore, the details show that part of this amount was provided to Pasargad Bank’s subsidiaries by four banks: Eghtesad Novin, Tourism, Industry and Mine, and Middle East. Among the most important companies receiving these loans are Pasargad Brokerage, Zarand Steel, Amin Capital Development, and Pasargad Energy Expansion.
Some sources believe that the volume of rent that Pasargad Bank and its subsidiaries have benefited from is much greater than this amount. However, now that such figures have been released, we must wait and see whether the Central Bank of Saleh Abadi and the government of Ebrahim Raisi will address the issue.
Mihan Dairy and Ice Cream Industries
The name of the Mihan Group, which recently became controversial due to allegations of dairy transport vehicles being used in protests instead of personnel carriers, appears on this list. It has now been revealed that Mihan Dairy and Ice Cream Industries received over 10 trillion tomans in rent-seeking loans, the justification for which remains unclear. The names of Pasargad, Eghtesad Novin, Agriculture, Sina, Maskan, Shahr, and Day banks also appear on the list of lenders to Mihan and its subsidiaries.
On the other hand, documents have been released showing that this food and dairy producer received over 19 billion dollars in preferential currency under the pretext of imports. Among the most important companies receiving these loans are the Mihan Group, Ban Grain Group, Ayoub Stability Group, Rashakaspen Iranian Paper Manufacturing Complex, and others.
Kaleh Group
Kaleh Group, one of the giants in the production of dairy products and meat products, is also among the eight rent-seeking holdings. This group, having received over 335 million dollars in currency, has received more than 285 million dollars in 4,200 toman preferential currency.
Additionally, Eghtesad Novin, Industry and Mine, Agriculture, and Saman banks have collectively provided over 2,800 billion tomans in loans to the Solico Kaleh Group and Amol Meat Products Group. A person named Gholamali Soleimani, founder of Solico, is also listed among the loan recipients, having received over 1 trillion tomans of the loans allocated to Kaleh.
Minoo Industrial Group, Azadegan Group
Minoo Industrial Group, a long-standing name in Iran’s food product industry, also has a prominent presence on this list. The total loans this group has received from the banking system are recorded at over 2,600 billion tomans, all provided by Eghtesad Novin Bank to the two companies, Minoo Industrial Group and Azadegan Economic and Self-Sufficiency Group.
Modarres Group
The controversial Modarres Group is another of the eight disclosed rent-seeking holdings. This holding, owned by the Modarres family, is active in importing food products, particularly sugar, into Iran. There are also documents regarding this family’s connection with the office of a religious authority, which has always been denied by the family of this authority.
According to published documents, Ava Tejarat Saba Company, a subsidiary of the Modarres Group, received 1 trillion tomans in loans from Pasargad Bank. However, the strange and concerning point is the volume of 4,200 toman preferential currency that this group has allocated to itself. According to this report, the Modarres Group received over 4.7 billion dollars in 4,200 toman currency to be used for importing essential goods.