Vatican City is a beautiful, yet mysterious place. I was able to visit Vatican City in 2022 and I left the area both impressed and intrigued. This autonomous country located within the city of Rome is only approximately 110 acres. Despite my visit to the Vatican on a very cold day in the middle of the week, the place was packed with tourists. The Sistene Chapel, St. Peter’s Basilica, and various museums are certainly big revenue generators. Moreover, it’s not a tough stretch to venture the Catholic church gives plenty of financial support to the Vatican’s existence. My curiosity is in the Institute for Works of Religion (IOR). The IOR is the Vatican’s private bank.
There is very little public information on the IOR. The IOR apparently only allows particular individuals to maintain accounts; thus, the IOR has been referred to as “the most secret bank in the world.” Despite the secrecy, the IOR is not immune from issues reaching the public eye. In 2018, the IOR announced in a press release that it was charging its former bank president, Angelo Caloia, and his lawyer, Gabriele Liuzzo, of embezzling in excess of Euro 50 million through fraudulent real estate and money laundering schemes. Caloia was sentenced to almost nine years in prison by the Vatican Court. Caloia was the President of the Vatican Bank for 20 years until September 2009. This is the first time the Vatican has issued a prison sentence for financial crimes.
MoneyManeuvering 