Assad holds nearly $70M in London HSBC account, prompting calls for asset seizure

Former Syrian regime ruler Bashar al-Assad has more than £55 million ($69.4 million) in a frozen HSBC bank account in London, part of £163 million linked to Assad, his family, and close allies, according to a report by The i Paper.

The funds have sparked demands from human rights organizations and political leaders for the U.K. government to seize the assets and use them to rebuild war-torn Syria.

Assad’s assets in UK

Court documents from 2011 revealed that Assad held £40 million in an HSBC account, frozen under U.K. sanctions imposed after his regime’s violent crackdown on anti-government protests. Despite being inaccessible to Assad, the funds have grown to £55 million due to accrued interest.

Key figures include:

• £163 million in U.K. accounts tied to Assad, his family, and associates.
• £26 million Mayfair townhouse owned by Assad’s uncle, Rifaat al-Assad.

Calls for government action

Political leaders and human rights advocates are urging the U.K. government to take decisive steps under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 to confiscate the funds.

• Iain Duncan Smith, former Conservative leader, said: “After more than a decade of conflict in Syria, it is high time the U.K. government takes decisive action to support victims of the Syrian conflict and the Assad regime.”
• Priti Patel, shadow foreign secretary, emphasized: “The government must use the full range of powers available to review the assets held in the U.K. and repurpose them for the good of the Syrian people.”

Britain must give strong and principled diplomatic leadership on the situation in Syria. The Government must be clear about their actions to protect our interests from potential harm and a clear strategy for working with our partners across the region to bring stability to Syria,…

— Priti Patel MP (@pritipatel) December 12, 2024

The funds, advocates argue, should eventually be returned to Syria once an internationally recognized government is established.

Humanitarian needs and justice

The devastation caused by Assad’s regime has left millions in dire need.

• Over 500,000 people were killed during Syria’s civil war.
• Millions were displaced, with limited resources for reconstruction and humanitarian aid.

Razan Rashidi, executive director of the Syria Campaign, stated: “These millions in U.K. banks belong to the Syrian people. The funds are urgently needed to meet the dire humanitarian needs in Syria and should be spent there.”

Legal and administrative challenges

Under U.K. financial sanctions, frozen funds remain the property of the account holder, meaning they cannot be redirected without additional legal measures.

Chris Doyle, director of the Council for Arab-British Understanding, highlighted: “This money should be transferred, at the right time, to a new Syrian authority … transparent, credible, legitimate, and inclusive.”

Despite growing pressure, there is no existing legal framework to repurpose frozen assets directly for humanitarian use.

HSBC and UK government response

HSBC declined to comment on specific client accounts, emphasizing its compliance with all sanctions regulations. The U.K. government has similarly refrained from commenting on individual cases.