Thirty years after the money laundering scandal that badly shook the Catholic church in the 1980s, the Institute for Works of Religion (IOR) – the Vatican's bank – is again at the centre of a financial scandal relating to money laundering.

On June 29, Bishop Nunzio Scarano, the former chief accounting officer for the agency that manages the Vatican's assets was arrested over claims he used the IOR to repatriate money hidden in Switzerland.

On July 3, the Public Prosecutor of Rome opened a money laundering investigation against the Director General of the IOR, Paolo Cipriani, and his number two, Massimo Tulli.

They are being investigated over a number of ​​suspicious transactions worth more than €1m. Both men resigned earlier this week.

Receive the best of European journalism straight to your inbox every Thursday
Tags

Was this article useful? If so we are delighted!

It is freely available because we believe that the right to free and independent information is essential for democracy. But this right is not guaranteed forever, and independence comes at a cost. We need your support in order to continue publishing independent, multilingual news for all Europeans.

Discover our subscription offers and their exclusive benefits and become a member of our community now!

Are you a news organisation, a business, an association or a foundation? Check out our bespoke editorial and translation services.

Support independent European journalism

European democracy needs independent media. Join our community!

On the same topic