The regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad collapsed, and his whereabouts are still unknown, as many suspect that he fled to the Iranian capital, Tehran. At the same time, there was much talk about Bashar al-Assad’s wealth, and to what extent does the family’s wealth reach?
As the Syrian regime reached the end of the road, the focus shifted to the financial details of Bashar al-Assad and his family.
The most powerful family in Syria is the godfather of the country’s largest economic players and crime syndicates alike. These networks penetrate all sectors of the Syrian economy and effectively fund large sums of money to the government.
Bashar al-Assad’s net worth
According to the Saudi newspaper Elaph, which cited input from the British intelligence service MI6, the Assad family’s wealth amounts to 200 tons of gold, $16 billion, and 5 billion euros.
The report claimed that the amount was equivalent to Syria’s entire budget for 7 years when compared to data up to 2023. However, there was no way to verify this claim.
The closest thing to an accurate calculation of Bashar al-Assad’s wealth is a report issued by the US State Department in 2022.
The report estimated the finances of Bashar al-Assad, his wife Asma Akhras al-Assad, his brother Maher al-Assad, his sister Bushra al-Assad, his cousins, uncles, and others.
The report begins by admitting that the calculations were based largely on open source information and they had no idea about the finances of Bashar’s three children, Hafez, Zain and Karim – all of whom will be adults in 2024.
The Assad family’s net worth is believed to be between $1-2 billion, an estimate that the US State Department has not been able to “independently verify.”
The Assad family is directly or indirectly involved in almost all large-scale economic operations in the country.
Calculating their net worth is almost impossible for any outsider because they have assets hidden in numerous accounts, real estate portfolios, companies and offshore tax havens. To avoid detection and avoid sanctions, they use fictitious names, as well as run shell companies.
Legal and illegal sources of income while the country is starving
The report claimed that the Assad family engages in criminal activities including smuggling, arms trading, drug trafficking, protection operations and extortion, and the huge amounts of money gained through these illicit transactions are laundered through legitimate corporate structures and non-profit entities they operate in the country.
“…The Assad family operates a complex patronage system that includes shell companies and corporate fronts that act as a tool for the system to access financial resources,” the report said.
There is also the Shalish family – Bashar al-Assad’s paternal cousins. Dhu al-Himma Shalish (also known as Zuhair Shalish) and Riad Shalish have a net worth of more than $1 billion, stemming from their business interests.
They also participate in many suspicious activities while in charge of a large Syrian group with interests in the construction and car import sectors.
Rami Makhlouf, one of Syria’s richest and most powerful men, is also part of Assam’s family tree.
Rami is Bashar’s maternal cousin, and it is said that he controlled a large share of the Syrian economy, and after his conflict with the president in 2020, many of his business interests were transferred to state receivership, meaning that a fair share of his financial assets is estimated at about 5 to 10 billion. Dollars returned to Assad’s treasury.
