The 6 billion dollars Vatican was suffering from catastrophic scandals and investments – and the relationships with the mafia. How Pope Francis tried to fix it

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  • Pope Francis died on MondayLeaving behind a heritage of reform at the Vatican Bank of $ 6 billion. Despite its establishment of the clergy and the financial church in 1942, the organization was linked to scandals, secret, secret and disastrous financial deals. During the Francis period, the bank improved transparency and central control over its financial resources to enhance organizational oversight.

Although it was described Fighting capitalism By some, one of the main achievements of Pope Francis was a financial endeavor: its repair of the 6 billion dollars of Vatican.

Francis, who died on Monday at the age of 88, sought to reform Bank And the Apostolic Rapin shortly after the Pope becomes in 2013. Although it was created in 1942 with the aim of managing funds for clerics and church organizations all over the world, for years, claiming that the IOR Business Institute (IOR), known as the Vatican Bank, was suffering from money laundering, education, and even the delivery of the mafia. The Vatican Bank was 5.4 billion euros, or 6.1 billion dollars As of 2023.

However, during Pontificate, Francis, Jorge Mario Bergelio, born in Argentina, won the changes in the bank that helped extract corruption and bring more transparency to the work of the internal organization. Thanks to the work that started under the predecessor of Francis, Pope Benedict XVI, the Vatican Bank started in 2013 Annual reports For the first time, it determines its profit, operational costs and charitable giving, among other details.

The bank’s administration also obtained a renewal with Francis in 2014 that reduces the strength of clerics in economic affairs Appointment As the Vatican Bank President, Jean -Babetst de Fransu, a French financier who was the former CEO of INVESCO Euro. De Franso, 61, has worked The President of the Vatican Bank Since 2014.

Pope Francis also sought to increase transparency in the bank, comply with financial regulations and a more stringent implementation outside the supervision during his term. Bank I closed thousands of accounts In 2014 to make the organization comply with international financial standards.

With the implementation of a tougher control of the Holy See, Francis also ordered all Vatican departments to close their investment accounts and send their money to the Vatican Bank. Through the centrality of the Vatican funds, Francis has moved away from the financial authority of the clergy other than experts and helped in the most powerful supervision of the financial organizers of its passports.

Pope Francis’s changes in the Vatican came in response to many scandals, including the collapse of the largest bank in Italy, Panco Ambrosiano, where the Vatican bank had a financial share. Bank President Roberto Calvi was found later hanged Under the BlackFRIRARS bridge in London with a brick pocket as well as thousands in cash. Calvi was accused of stealing millions of mafia. He was Referred To “God’s banker” because of his prayer in the Vatican.

In addition, the Financial Adviser in the Vatican under Pope Paul VI, Michel Sindona, had relationships with organized crime and the Vatican withdrawal into catastrophic investments, including the collapse of Franklin National Bank in the United States in 1974. The time of his deathWho was poisoning cyanide at the age of 65, Sindona was serving a 25 -year prison sentence for fraud.

Despite the efforts of Francis, the Catholic Church is still shaking with some scandals.

Vatican Emphasized in 2022 Two of the former Vatican bank managers were convicted of bad violations in the organization. In 2023, the Cardinal was Heal To five and a half years in prison for embezzlement.

This story was originally shown on Fortune.com



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