Return to business while on prison leave: the $750m Avan Rail deal and questions about his role
In 2025, after the judiciary first denied he had been released, DotOne holding's Avan Rail signed a roughly $750m memorandum with Iran's railways, and Zanjani hailed it on X as the biggest private rail investment in Iran's history. Outlets questioned the money's source, his role and oversight. The judiciary confirmed he was on prison leave, and the railway later said it had no contract with him.
Editorial timeline of public reporting, not a legal finding.
- Judiciary denies reports of his release, as reported - Iran International reported that after Iranian media and social media users suggested Zanjani had been released and might be launching a crypto bank, the judiciary's office, quoted by ISNA, said his status had not changed, while adding that he had been given the opportunity to take compensatory actions in coordination with relevant authorities. Iran's judiciary denies release of convicted tycoon Babak Zanjani
- Avan Rail signs the railway memorandum and Zanjani posts on X, as reported - BBC Persian and Radio Farda reported that, with Roads Minister Farzaneh Sadegh present, DotOne holding's Avan Rail signed a memorandum worth about 61 trillion tomans for 300 passenger trains, 50 locomotives and 600 wagons. The company's CEO said Zanjani was not present in the holding but that his overseas capital was being moved in. Zanjani wrote on X that this was the year economic power would replace political power. قرارداد ۶۱ هزار میلیارد تومانی آوانریل با راهآهن ایران؛ «بابک زنجانی حضور ندارد اما با سرمایههایش در خارج پشتیبانی میکند»
- IranWire investigation into registration records and wider criticism - IranWire reported that official records showed Zanjani was appointed CEO of an Avan financial and economic development group on March 15, 2025, and that he remained a shareholder or board member in at least 11 active companies. It said political activist Mohammad Mohajeri called the deal a banana peel under the feet of Masoud Pezeshkian's (@drpezeshkian) government. Amwaj.media reported widespread skeptical coverage in Iranian media. After Stealing $3.1B, Iranian Tycoon Wins $800M Railway Deal
- Judiciary spokesman confirms he is on prison leave, as reported - IranWire reported that judiciary spokesman Asghar Jahangir told a press conference that Zanjani, having served 11 years of his 20-year sentence, had become eligible for leave this year under judicial supervision. BBC Persian later reported the official said his business activity under judicial supervision had no legal bar, while the head of the National Iranian Oil Company said his debt file with the oil ministry was still open. Babak Zanjani Granted Prison Leave After 11 Years, Judiciary Confirms
- Railway chief says it has no contract with Zanjani, as reported - Tinn News, citing ILNA, reported that railway CEO and deputy roads minister Jabbarali Zakeri said the railway had signed no contract with Zanjani or a company attributed to him, only a memorandum with Avan Rail's CEO. He said there were problems between Zanjani and the central bank, that the railway had given the group no financing, and that 30 to 40 wagons had been brought in so far. راه آهن هیچ قراردادی با «بابک زنجانی» منعقد نکرده است