Frankfurt's Gravenbruch hotel, linked to Mojtaba Khamenei's financial network, sold

The five-star Gravenbruch hotel in Neu-Isenburg, on the outskirts of Frankfurt, Germany, formerly run under the Hilton brand and co-owned by Ali Ansari, a sanctioned businessman close to Mojtaba Khamenei, has been handed over to the property group Comer Group. Joachim Kühne, the hotel's insolvency administrator, said the handover to the new owner took place on Friday, 30 October.

The sale was possible only after approval from Germany's Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control, which had to be sure that Ali Ansari would not profit from the proceeds. According to the administrator, the money from the sale is being paid into a separate escrow account so that it cannot reach him. The price was not disclosed.

Ali Ansari and Mojtaba Khamenei's financial network

Britain sanctioned Ali Ansari in autumn 2025. The US Treasury then named him one of Mojtaba Khamenei's main financiers, and the European Union added him to its sanctions list on 30 July 2026. The EU said Ansari had acquired large assets, including property in Europe and Britain, through a network of companies. An earlier Bloomberg investigation showed that two Frankfurt hotels are among the assets attributed to Mojtaba Khamenei's network, with ultimate ownership leading to a company registered in Saint Kitts and Nevis. Ansari denies any link to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) or to Mojtaba Khamenei.

After the US sanctions, Hilton cancelled its management contract and the hotel filed for insolvency. Once the EU sanctions took effect, the hotel's accounts were frozen and it has not taken any guests since early August. About 140 people worked at the hotel before the crisis; according to the administrator, all 90 remaining staff are being transferred to the new owner.

The hotel's future

The Comer Group, a company founded more than 30 years ago by two Irish brothers, has not yet announced a reopening date and expects the hotel to be fully operating from early summer 2027.

The first major asset in Europe attributed to Mojtaba Khamenei's financial network has slipped out of the network's hands under the pressure of sanctions.