Special Report-Iran and Russia, as well as the New Zealand insurance company that ensured their oil flowed despite sanctions

The tanker Yug left the Chinese port Qingdao last Christmas after unloading 2,000,000 barrels of Iranian oil sanctioned by the United Nations. A vessel carrying Russian crude oil shook through the icy waters of the Arctic on its way to India. Six thousand miles from Malaysia, a third vessel unloaded its Iranian oil cargo.

Three tankers were owned by different companies, operated by different people and had different clients. They all shared one thing, however: A small insurer with headquarters in New Zealand that was backed by some of world's largest reinsurance companies.

Paul Rankin, 75, and his family run Maritime Mutual. It has been insuring tugboats, ferries, and cargo ships for more than 20 years.

Maritime Mutual also assisted in the trade of tens billions of dollars worth of Iranian and Russian crude oil by providing the vessels with the insurance needed to enter ports. This was according to a review thousands of shipping records and insurance records. It also included hundreds of oil transactions and sanctions designations as well as interviews with over two dozen people who knew the company.

The shadow fleet is a group of tankers who transport banned cargoes out of countries like Iran, Russia, and Venezuela. They conceal their trade by using fake documents, locations and names.

Maritime Mutual’s insurance coverage played a vital role in helping the dark fleet – as it is also known – to operate despite the sanctions designed to stop Iran from raising funds for anti-Western militias in the Middle East, and drain Russia’s war chest to fight the conflict in Ukraine.

Reporting reveals that at one point, the company, whose primary business Maritime Mutual Insurance Association is based in a dark gray office building in Auckland has insured almost one out of six shadow fleet tankers sanctioned and sanctioned from Western governments such as the United States.

David Tannenbaum, former U.S. Treasury sanction specialist and director of Blackstone Compliance Services, commented on the findings. "The numbers are bigger than many of the dark-fleet actors that we follow who are majors in their businesses," said David Tannenbaum, director of sanctions consultancy Blackstone Compliance Services and a former U.S. Treasury sanctions specialist.

Lloyd's List, a shipping magazine, reported previously that Maritime Mutual had covered a few tankers who had evaded sanction and revealed some details about its ownership and corporate structures. This is the first report to show the extent of shadow fleet use of Maritime Mutual, and the Western companies who support it by providing reinsurance to cover potential huge payouts.

New Zealand, in collaboration with Australia, Britain, and the United States, is investigating Maritime Mutual because they are concerned that it could have enabled the violation and failure of sanctions, and that the company failed to meet their obligations to prevent money laundering and terrorism funding. This investigation was not previously reported.

In a letter to Maritime Mutual, the company said that it "categorically denied" any conduct that violated international sanctions. It maintains a "zero tolerance policy" for sanction breaches, and operates under "rigorous standards of compliance designed to ensure full compliance with all applicable laws and regulation".

Maritime Mutual has not commented on the New Zealand investigation. Rankin, founder of the company, and his family did not respond to requests for comments.

Police search for maritime mutual offices

A second person familiar with the investigation confirmed that police in New Zealand conducted a search of Maritime Mutual's premises on 16 October as part of an investigation into alleged violations of Russian sanctions.

A person claimed that officers from the Financial Crime Group seized documents and files during searches of Maritime Mutual offices and residences in Auckland, Christchurch and Auckland. The police said that they had questioned three individuals, but there have not been any criminal charges filed.

The three individuals' identities could not be determined. Maritime Mutual confirmed that police entered their Auckland office on 16 October.

In a statement dated October 21, Maritime Mutual's New Zealand Branch said that its board had resolved the day before to not provide coverage for any vessels identified by shipping intelligence providers Windward or Lloyd's List to be in the shadow fleet nor for any vessel transporting Russian oil or refined petrol products.

The MMIA said that all of its activities were in compliance with the sanctions, and it took the decision because tankers require a disproportionate amount time for management and compliance.

Sanctions are violated when services, such as insurance, are provided to a vessel on a Western blacklist. Many Western governments forbid the provision of services to enable the sale and transport of banned Russian or Iranian oil products even if the ship itself hasn't been sanctioned.

Maritime Mutual did not come to any conclusions independent about the legality or otherwise of its activities.

Maritime Mutual had previously stated that it uses a detailed due diligence and onboarding procedure to screen shipowners, ultimate beneficial owner and vessels before granting insurance. The contract conditions, it said, require that any ship or owner found to be in violation of sanctions immediately loses coverage.

I was unable contact the owner and operator of the Yug (formerly known as Mur) via email. Maritime Mutual was not mentioned by government officials in Russia or Iran. Russia has claimed that Western sanctions are illegal, and Vladimir Putin has praised Moscow's success at circumventing these sanctions.

The company's operations are not fully reflected in the examination of Maritime Mutual. The news agency was unable to identify the hundreds of tanks it claims it covers.

Maritime Mutual, unlike most of its competitors, does not provide a means for the public check if a vessel has a cover. Maritime Mutual does not share this information with other major providers of shipping data, such as S&P Global Market Intelligence or Lloyd's List Intelligence.

Maritime Mutual has not commented on why it does not list the vessels that it insures, or share data with data providers.

Also, Maritime Mutual could not determine which clients it may have dropped because they were deemed to be in violation of sanctions. It refused to give a list of all vessels for whom cover had been terminated.

DEAD IN WATER WITHOUT INSURANCE

Maritime Mutual’s protection and indemnity policy, also known as the main insurance product offered by Maritime Mutual, does not cover either the vessel itself or its cargo. The ship and its owner are covered in the event that damage is accidentally caused to property, people or the environment.

P&I insurance for small tankers may cost as much as tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars per year. However, according to industry sources, it can be more than $200,000 per vessel for large and old vessels depending on the age, size, and owner of the ship.

Tannenbaum says that P&I coverage is essential for shadow fleet vessels. He said that without P&I insurance, shadow fleet vessels are dead in the waters. Even Iranian and Russian ports won't allow uninsured vessels to enter their waters.

During an investigation published in January into the movement of Iranian crude oil around the globe, Maritime Mutual first discovered shipping documents that showed it had insured tankers transporting sanctioned petroleum.

It is not possible to provide a full list of clients. The list was compiled using a number of sources, including emails leaked from Iranian oil traders revealing their insurers; Russian port data and customs; company documents and shipping databases. The list was shared with the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, a Helsinki-based think tank that tracks the energy industry.

CREA found that out of 231 vessels examined, 130 were carrying energy products from Iran or Russia after sanctions had been imposed against Tehran in November 2018, and Moscow in December 2020.

CREA, using commercial databases on individual oil trades as well as historical crude prices, calculated that vessels insured by Maritime Mutual shipped at least 18.2 billion dollars of Iranian oil and other energy products. They also estimated that $16.7 billion worth of Russian energy goods were transported since the sanctions went into effect.

Maritime Mutual often covered 30 or more oil tankers that were transporting Iranian and Russian products in a single day. On April 1, 2020, there were 41. CREA's calculations using the same databases.

Maritime Mutual has not commented on CREA figures. The insurer stated that it obtained attestations in its statement to ensure vessels transporting Russian oil were compliant with Western sanctions.

It said that "there is no cover for any ships which operate in a manner which does not comply with all applicable sanction regimes, or exposes MMIA in any other way to sanctions risks." This included the vessels mentioned in your inquiry, as well any vessel transporting Iranian oil.

Maritime Mutual has not responded to requests for copies of attestations. On October 15, the company announced that all of its insurance quotes now include a specific sanction warranty requiring clients ensure vessels are operated "in full compliance" with applicable sanctions regimes.

This language was found in an insurance certificate for a ship dated March 2025, but it wasn't in documents similar to those issued in 2022 and 2023 or in January 2024.

BLACKLISTED BY WEST

Maritime Mutual told the public in April that it insures 6,000 vessels. Tankers, which are vessels that carry liquid cargoes like crude oil, accounted for about 8% of this total. This is about 480 tanks.

The review revealed that many of the vessels covered by Maritime Mutual are sanctioned now.

Pole Star Global, an intelligence and data company specializing in maritime matters, reports that the United States, European Union, and other countries sanctioned 621 tankers from shadow fleets as of July 31.

Using Lloyd's List Intelligence Seasearcher, and the official sanctions databases, we identified 97 tanks under sanctions which had Maritime Mutual insurance, including 48 who were covered by Maritime Mutual on the day that they were blacklisted. It was not possible to determine if the remaining tankers had been insured by the company at the time they were blacklisted.

Maritime Mutual, when asked to comment on these findings, said that it had canceled coverage for 92 ships since 2022 due to sanctions.

Maritime Mutual refused to give a complete list of all the tankers they had insured.

Washington sanctioned a tanker Fenghuang owned by a Hong Kong-based company on 24 February 2025. The data revealed that exactly a week after arriving in the port of Nakhodka in eastern Russia, the ship formerly called the Phoenix I declared it was covered by Maritime Mutual.

Maritime Mutual stated that it began insuring Fenghuang's tanker on February 14, 2025 and cancelled coverage 10 days after the vessel was sanctioned.

Maritime Mutual's policies, as is common for marine insurers of all types, contain a clause that prohibits coverage of claims and members who put the insurer in danger by violating sanctions, according to their rule book.

In a statement to Maritime Mutual, the company said that insurance coverage will be automatically canceled if a vessel is deemed sanctioned.

Maritime Mutual covered at least one of their vessels for 61 companies, either directly or through affiliates. 61 of these companies were hit by sanctions while Maritime Mutual covered at least one vessel.

According to Russian port data, seven out of the eight tankers that were blacklisted declared having Maritime Mutual Insurance.

According to Russian port data, one of them, the Sunsea (formerly known as Chembulk-Tortola), reported that it had a Maritime Mutual Insurance policy which began several months after the sanctions were imposed.

Maritime Mutual stated that it began covering the Sunsea on May 20, 2023, over two months after Washington sanctioned it, due to an error in administration. The policy was cancelled when the error was discovered one month later.

It was either impossible to contact the owners and operators, the Fenghuang (formerly the Minerva Zenia), or they didn't respond to emails.

Maritime Mutual refused to disclose details about the tankers that it insured. This made it impossible to verify every Maritime Mutual policy. Many of the policies identified by were expired and could not be checked as the official shipping registry databases did not allow access to expired policies.

The news agency, however, was able check the validity seven documents issued by shipping registries that confirmed Maritime Mutual's insurance coverage for the vessels. According to official databases of the registries, all were genuine.

Western sanctions don't prohibit the export of Russian oil as long as it is sold below a certain price cap. The cap, originally set at $60 per barrel by 2022, was reduced to $47.60 in September by the majority of Western governments. The cap was designed to limit Russia’s Ukraine war fund while ensuring reliable supplies of Russian oil in order to prevent a spike in global energy costs.

Maritime Mutual could not determine with certainty whether the cap was breached by each Russian cargo that was shipped by a tanker covered by Maritime Mutual. Documents and government databases revealed that 30 tankers blacklisted for carrying Russian cargoes above the cap were covered by Maritime Mutual on the date they were blacklisted.

Maritime Mutual said that before its announcement on October 21, that it would no longer cover ships that carry Russian oil products, it carefully evaluated any vessel carrying Russian oil and obtained the necessary attestations to ensure it was in compliance with G7 oil prices cap.

According to the guidance regarding the Russian price cap, insurers must obtain attestations from parties involved in each oil transaction stating that they have complied.

Industry insiders claim that ensuring clients follow sanctions rules can be a difficult task. Neil Roberts is the chair of the International Union of Marine Insurance Policy Forum. He said that underwriters are relying on the clients' word and cannot know the contract price.

A senior manager of a major broker said that companies may be required to hire teams "to continuously monitor each and every one of our several thousand ships."

Global Fishing Watch (a non-profit organization that monitors human activities at sea) reports that vessels covered by Maritime Mutual and carrying Iranian or Russian crude oil often try to conceal their movements.

The analysis found 274 instances where ships insured by Maritime Mutual switched off their automatic identification system (AIS), which signals their location or manipulated it in order to send false tracking data - a common tactic known as spoofing - used by crews to camouflage their activities. Maritime Mutual did not comment on Global Fishing Watch's analysis.

Bjorn Bergman is an analyst at Global Fishing Watch. He said: "It's surprising that a company in a country that cooperates with U.S. sanctions and European sanctions, insures so many vessels spoofing positions."

International Maritime Organization (IMO) of the U.N. requires that large vessels traveling internationally use AIS. However, there are some safety exceptions. Bergman explained that enforcement is left to individual countries who register ships.

REINSURERS RISK SANCTIONS

Maritime Mutual, like other protection and indemnity insurances, spreads the risk that high payouts will result from accidents by reinsurance. Reinsurance is a system whereby insurance companies give a portion their profits to another insurer in exchange for assistance covering claims.

According to guidelines published by Western governments, reinsurers must comply with sanctions. Waleed Tahirkheli is the managing partner of Eldwick Law in London, a firm that specializes in sanctions. He said that Maritime Mutual's reinsurance companies could be subject to enforcement measures if their P&I policies cover ships that violate sanctions. Brokers who assist Maritime Mutual in arranging reinsurance could also face enforcement measures.

Maritime Mutual's site states that it is re-insured by Lloyd's of London members, which is one of the largest insurance markets in the world, with over 50 members.

According to those familiar with the reinsurance industry, Lloyd's members that have reinsured Maritime Mutual are the largest reinsurer in the world, Germany's Munich Re Group and its German counterpart Hannover Re as well as Britain's MS Amlin, Atrium and MS Amlin.

Aon, a major British-American insurer, and Lockton of America have acted as Maritime Mutual’s brokers. A person with direct experience in the industry confirmed this.

Atrium has confirmed that it reinsures Maritime Mutual. Aon, the broker, also confirmed that Maritime Mutual is a customer. MS Amlin stated that it reinsured Maritime Mutual, but terminated the relationship without giving details.

Hannover Re refused to comment on specific clients. It stated that it was committed to complying international sanctions, and had clauses in their contracts which prevented coverage for any sanctioned entity.

Arabella Ramage - legal and regulatory director of Lloyd's Market Association - declined to comment on Maritime Mutual's reinsurance via Lloyd's. She stated that Lloyd's does not have the authority to regulate reinsurance companies or access their contracts or sanctions screening systems.

Both Munich Re and Lloyd's of London declined to comment. Lockton stated that it takes its obligations to comply with sanctions very seriously, but was unable to comment on specific clients.

WOOING IRAN

Rankin established Maritime Mutual in Auckland, New Zealand, in 2004. He is a marine insurance veteran. According to a U.S. diplomatic leak, Japan accused Maritime Mutual of insuring North Korean vessels the following year.

According to a cable, Rankin informed a New Zealand official that the company no longer insures North Korean vessels. WikiLeaks published both cables. Maritime Mutual has not commented on the contents of these U.S. cable.

The North Korean mission at the United Nations, in New York, did not respond when asked for a comment. The Japanese transport ministry has said that it did not take any special measures against this company.

The Maritime Mutual Group is a family affair. According to the website, LinkedIn, and social media profiles of the company, two of Rankin’s daughters, Claire, and Sarah, as well as a son-in law, Steven Joyce are among its staff. Rankin, Agnes his wife, Claire, and Joyce are directors of Maritime Management Administration Services. This company is registered in British filings under the name Maritime Pacific Insurance Services.

No one from the Rankin Family responded to our requests for comment.

Six people familiar with the company said that Maritime Mutual's initial business was dominated by insuring smaller ships and older vessels at lower premiums compared to large P&I companies, who are known in the industry as "clubs".

Since then, the company's focus has changed. Eight sources in the shipping industry familiar with Maritime Mutual have said that it is placing a portion of its business on shadow fleets.

Maritime Mutual is affiliated with two companies in Dubai, MME Services (Maritime Mutual Services) and Maritime Reinsurance (Maritime Reinsurance). Three people have confirmed that the company performs a large part of its shadow fleet operations in Dubai. The Emirati authorities have not responded to our request for comment.

In 2016, two year before U.S. president Donald Trump reimposed the sanctions on Iran, Maritime Mutual – dubbed by some customers as "New Zealand P&I Club" – was wooing Iranian businesses.

On the website of Iranian shipping company Shiraz Marine, a Maritime Mutual slide show from that year highlighted the insurer's New Zealand office and its decades of experience.

Shiraz Marine was given "authority to promote the Association’s interests in the Islamic Republic of Iran" and to introduce members to be insured by Maritime Mutual, with effect as of January 23, 2017. This is according to a note on Shiraz Marine’s website that bears the Maritime Mutual Logo and Rankin’s signature.

Shiraz Marine has not responded to any emails requesting comment.

Trump reimposed U.S. oil sanctions against Iran in November 2018. Maritime Mutual saw its revenues soar as Western countries attempted to choke off Iran's oil exports and later, Russian ones.

According to New Zealand company filings, its insurance sales increased 9.5% per year on average from 2011 to 2018. This amounted to $14.2 million. After the U.S. imposed sanctions on Iran in 2019, its revenue increased by 41% per year, on average. It reached $108.5 million at the end of last year.

In 2023, after the Russian sanctions had been imposed for a full year, revenue growth reached a peak of 60%. Iran's oil sales also soared to $42 Billion in that year, near the levels prior to sanctions taking effect, according U.S. Energy Information Administration estimations.

Shiraz Marine, a shipping company in Iran, posted on Instagram in Farsi that it is the "official representative" of the New Zealand P&I Club (MMI) for Iran.

Maritime Mutual strongly denied that it actively sought shadow fleet business in response to questions. The company said that the significant increase in large ships covered by the firm after reinsurers removed restrictions on vessel size was a major driver of its revenue growth in 2019.

Maritime Mutual did not pay any insurance claims to sanctioned ships or their owners or to vessels that carried Russian or Iranian oil products.

NEW ZEALAND LAUNCHES AN INVESTIGATION

Maritime Mutual was not under the jurisdiction of New Zealand’s insurance regulators for two decades because it did not have a license to sell insurance to New Zealanders or any other entities based in that country.

On October 8, 2024 an email from a member in the maritime industry of New Zealand was delivered to the central bank governor. The email asked for the regulator to investigate Maritime Mutual, because it was using New Zealand as a "facade of respectability" to give the company a good image.

The bank responded a day after: "Acknowledging reception." The team will keep you informed."

The exchange was shown under the condition that the sender of the email would not be revealed.

Sources with direct knowledge of this investigation have confirmed that the central bank is investigating Maritime Mutual because they are concerned it could have allowed the violation of sanctions and failed to take the appropriate measures to guard against terrorism funding. They also believe Maritime Mutual may be misrepresenting itself as a regulated insurance company in New Zealand.

Maritime Mutual has not commented on the investigation, or the concerns raised by the authorities.

In February 2024, New Zealand joined the Western Coalition to enforce the Russian price cap. New Zealand may not specifically target Iranian oil, but it has reimposed sanctions against Tehran this month, which requires anyone who deals with Iran to be vigilant. This includes the oil sector.

A spokesperson for New Zealand’s Foreign Minister said that it would not disclose details of alleged noncompliance with Russian sanction, but confirmed that agencies were working with Maritime Mutual in "regulatory issues".

The Foreign Ministry said that it expects all New Zealanders to comply with the law, no matter where they are located or what services they offer. The central bank's spokesperson declined to comment about its enforcement activities.

According to a person who has direct knowledge of the investigation, investigators in New Zealand work with international partners including Australia, Britain, and the United States.

Requests for comments were not responded to by the U.S. Treasury or its Office of Foreign Assets Control (the agency that enforces economic and trade sanctions on Iran and Russia). The U.S. Department of Justice, as well as the European Union, declined to comment. The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed that it was aware of the concerns regarding Maritime Mutual, but declined to comment on matters of sanctions compliance.

The British Treasury refused to respond when asked if they were investigating Maritime Mutual. The Treasury refused to provide information about Maritime Mutual’s compliance with UK sanctions against Iran and Russia.

The release of this information could have a negative impact on Britain's relationship with other countries and members of the coalition that enforces the Russian price cap. The disclosure could provide some context as to the extent of Russian and Iranian sanctions being evaded.

The British Treasury stated that "releasing the information could aid criminals in their intent to circumvent or evade."

The company did not provide any further information.

(source: Reuters)