Syria’s Shadow Economy: Terror-Linked Insiders, Crony Capitalism, and a Looming Collapse

Hazem al-Sharaa (left) escorts his brother, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa (right), during their first official visit to Saudi Arabia—an appearance that underscores Hazem’s rising influence as the architect of Syria’s shadow economic overhaul.

By: ATN News

New York: — A sweeping Reuters investigation has ripped the veil off the secretive economic restructuring underway in Syria — revealing a murky convergence of former jihadists, sanctioned figures, and nepotism-fueled power that is replacing Bashar al-Assad’s fallen empire with what many fear is a more dangerous version of the same.

Abraham Succarieh, a sanctioned Australian known as Abu Mariam, now plays a key role in reshaping Syria’s post-Assad economy from behind the scenes.

The central figure behind Syria’s post-Assad economic overhaul is Hazem al-Sharaa, brother of President Ahmed al-Sharaa. With no official government post, Hazem, a former PepsiCo executive in Iraqi Kurdistan, now wields unchecked control over Syria’s economy. He works alongside Abraham Succarieh, an Australian national sanctioned for terror financing, who leads a clandestine economic committee under the alias Abu Mariam.

Behind closed doors, this unelected and unaccountable cabal has seized over $1.6 billion in assets — much of it reclaimed from Assad-era oligarchs in exchange for amnesty and protection from prosecution. But the tradeoff is toxic: Syrians are seeing the same tycoons who looted the nation under Assad being welcomed back into the fold, now legitimized under new management.

While Assad’s security regime has been dismantled, insiders say the country is simply trading one palace elite for another — this time, with roots in Islamist militancy. President Sharaa, once known as Abu Mohammed al-Golani, led Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), an offshoot of Al Qaeda that ran a de facto state in Syria’s Idlib province. The same inner circle is now shaping Syria’s future — and its economy.

Ahmed al-Sharaa, Syria’s de facto leader and former head of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), stands among HTS fighters. The group, once linked to Al Qaeda, recently had U.S. sanctions lifted by President Trump as part of a controversial shift in Syria policy.

Hazem al-Sharaa’s reach is extensive. From editing investment laws to overseeing a new sovereign wealth fund (announced July 9), his influence is now institutionalized. The fund, according to Reuters, is set to absorb revenues from asset settlements and public-private partnerships. But international experts warn it's a "shell game" — where looted wealth is recycled without reform, accountability, or justice.

“Calling this a restructuring is a misnomer,” said one Western diplomat who spoke to ATN on background. “It’s a laundering operation — for money, legitimacy, and power.”

The web of corruption is staggering. Businessmen linked to war profiteering — accused of smelting metal from bombed towns, trafficking narcotics, and flying mercenaries — are being asked to hand over partial stakes in companies while retaining wealth and freedom. Among them: Samer Foz, Mohammed Hamsho, and Issam Shammout, all under U.S. or EU sanctions.

In a particularly Orwellian twist, Cham Wings, a sanctioned airline implicated in smuggling operations, has been rebranded as Fly Cham. Same planes, same routes — just a new name.

Abu Abdelrahman, seen here in an HTS-linked photo, now manages finances for Syria’s new de facto government. Operating from inside Syria central bank.

The figure running Syria’s central bank from the shadows? A former HTS field commander and baker known as Abu Abdelrahman (real name: Mustafa Qadid), who now controls financial decisions from the second floor of the bank, with the official governor reportedly forced to defer to him.

This is not economic reform. It’s a hostile takeover.

The United States has begun lifting sanctions to “give Syria a chance at greatness,” according to the State Department. But critics say Washington may be legitimizing a government with terrorist roots, opaque institutions, and no real checks on power.

“Justice has not been served. The war criminals are being rebranded as businessmen,” said a Damascus-based activist, Abdel Hamid Al-Assaf, who joined recent protests against the return of Assad-era tycoons.

The Reuters report also highlights Syria’s growing engagement with Gulf powers. A recent investment conference brought Saudi officials to Damascus with $6 billion in potential deals. Yet analysts caution that investment without transparency will only cement a corrupt elite and marginalize the Syrian people further.

“The machinery of plunder is still intact,” said Reinoud Leenders, a Syria expert at King’s College London. “It’s just been passed from one bloody hand to another.”

What’s emerging in Syria is not reconstruction — it’s reconstitution: a regime reborn through shadow deals, backroom settlements, and foreign cash.

A terror-linked brotherhood is now in charge, brandishing both AKs and Excel sheets, issuing decrees by day and making deals by night. Suits have replaced fatigues. But the guns, as Syrians know all too well, are still there — just tucked beneath the desk.