It's a miracle... The Vatican's economy minister has said hundreds of millions of euros were found "tucked away" in accounts of various Holy See departments that were previously not counted on the city-state's balance sheet. "In fact, we have discovered that the situation is much healthier than it seemed," noted Australian Cardinal George Pell, adding that "it is important to point out that the Vatican is not broke." Indeed a miracle - like hookers-and-blow in GDP data? However, the Vatican finances remain in darkness as Reuters reports [5], the state's top prosecutor has frozen 16 million euros in bank accounts owned by two former Vatican bank managers and a lawyer as part of an embezzlement investigation into the sale of 29 Vatican-owned real estate in the 2000s.
The Holy See is 'miraculously' doing quite well... (via Reuters) [6]
The Vatican's economy minister has said hundreds of millions of euros were found "tucked away" in accounts of various Holy See departments without having appeared in the city-state's balance sheets.
In an article for Britain's Catholic Herald Magazine to be published on Friday, Australian Cardinal George Pell wrote that the discovery meant overall Vatican finances were in better shape than previously believed.
"In fact, we have discovered that the situation is much healthier than it seemed, because some hundreds of millions of euros were tucked away in particular sectional accounts and did not appear on the balance sheet," he wrote.
"It is important to point out that the Vatican is not broke ... the Holy See is paying its way, while possessing substantial assets and investments," Pell said, according to an advance text made available on Thursday.
In his article, Pell said the reforms were "well under way and already past the point where the Vatican could return to the 'bad old days'."
But there remains the ongoing issues of total fraud and malfeasance in the city-state's financial organizations (via Reuters) [5]
The Vatican's top prosecutor has frozen 16 million euros in bank accounts owned by two former Vatican bank managers and a lawyer as part of an investigation into the sale of Vatican-owned real estate in the 2000s, according to the freezing order and other legal documents.
Prosecutor Gian Piero Milano said he suspected the three men, former bank president Angelo Caloia, ex-director general Lelio Scaletti, and lawyer Gabriele Liuzzo, of embezzling money while managing the sale of 29 buildings sold by the Vatican bank to mainly Italian buyers between 2001 and 2008, according to a copy of the freezing order reviewed by Reuters.
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The investigation is part of a drive to improve the transparency of the Vatican administration and finances, an endeavor that has accelerated under Pope Francis. The Argentine pontiff was elected in 2013 with a mandate to make the Roman Catholic Church more accountable to its 1.2 billion faithful.
Liuzzo, 91, confirmed in a telephone interview that his bank accounts had been frozen. He said the prosecutor’s allegations were "rubbish" and that all money from the sales of the buildings had gone to the bank.
Caloia, 75, did not respond to emailed questions and phone calls to his home and office requesting comment. Scaletti, 88, did not respond to messages left at his home.
The period relating to property sales covers seven years, and two papacies, when the Vatican's administration often operated without oversight.
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