The $6 billion Vatican Bank was beset by scandals, disastrous investments—and ties to the Mafia. How Pope Francis tried to fix it

Although he was billed as an anti-capitalist by some, one of Pope Francis’s key accomplishments was a financial endeavor: his reform of the scandal-plagued $6 billion Vatican Bank.

Francis, who died nearly a year ago at age 88, sought to reform the bank and the Holy See (the central government of the Catholic church and Vatican City) soon after he became pope in 2013. Although created in 1942 with the goal of managing funds for clergy and church organizations worldwide, for years, the Institute for the Works of Religion (IOR), commonly known as the Vatican Bank, was allegedly plagued by money laundering, corruption, and even Mafia connections. The Vatican Bank’s total holdings stood at 5.7 billion euros, or $6.5 billion as of 2024, an increase from the 5.4 billion euros, or $6.2 billion the year prior.

The Catholic Church has received renewed attention following President Donald Trump’s escalating attacks on the Church amid Pope Leo XIV’s criticism of the Iran war. Earlier this week, Trump canceled an $11 million contract with the Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Miami to shelter and care for unaccompanied migrant children.

During his pontificate, Francis, the Argentina-born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, spurred changes at the Vatican Bank that helped root out corruption and bring more transparency to the organization’s inner workings. Thanks to work that began under Francis’s predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, the Vatican Bank in 2013 began releasing annual reports for the first time ever, outlining its profit, operational costs, and charitable giving, among other details. 

The bank’s management also got a revamp, with Francis in 2014 decreasing the power of clergy members in economic affairs and appointing as head of the Vatican Bank Jean-Baptiste de Franssu, a French financier who was previously CEO of Invesco Europe. The 62-year-old de Franssu has served as president of the Vatican Bank since 2014.

Pope Francis also sought to increase transparency at the bank, complying with financial regulations and implementing stricter outside oversight during his tenure. The bank closed thousands of accounts in 2014 to bring the organization into compliance with international financial standards.

Implementing stricter control of the Holy See, Francis also ordered all Vatican departments to close their investment accounts and send their funds to the Vatican Bank. By centralizing the Vatican’s funds, Francis took financial power away from non-expert clergy and helped bring about stronger oversight by financial regulators of its holdings.

To be sure, Pope Francis’ successor Pope Leo XIV in October 2025 did away with the obligatory centralization of Vatican funds. The pontiff opened the door for the Vatican to open bank accounts in other countries if its investment committee “deems it more efficient or convenient.” The decree is meant to decentralize control of the Vatican’s holdings.

Pope Francis’s changes at the Vatican came in response to several scandals, including the collapse of Italy’s largest private bank, Banco Ambrosiano, in which the Vatican Bank had a financial stake. The bank’s president, Roberto Calvi, was later found hanged under London’s Blackfriars Bridge with pocketfuls of bricks as well as thousands in cash. Calvi had been accused of losing or misappropriating Mafia funds laundered through the bank. He was referred to as “God’s banker” because of his Vatican connections.

In addition, a Vatican financial advisor under Pope Paul VI, Michele Sindona, also had ties to organized crime and dragged the Vatican into disastrous investments, including the collapse of his U.S.-based Franklin National Bank in 1974. At the time of his death, of cyanide poisoning at age 65, Sindona was serving a 25-year sentence for fraud.

Despite Francis’s efforts, the Catholic Church has still been rocked by some scandals. 

The Vatican confirmed in 2022 that two former Vatican Bank directors were convicted for malfeasance at the organization. In 2023, a cardinal was sentenced to five and a half years in prison for embezzlement.

A version of this story was published on Fortune.com on April 22, 2025.

More on Pope Leo XIV:

• U.S. Catholic leaders criticize Trump for ‘disparaging words’ about the pope as Vatican clash risks alienating Catholic voters
• Pope Leo XIV: A ‘handful of tyrants’ are ravaging earth with war and exploitation
• Under attack from Trump, Pope says the president doesn’t understand ‘the message of the Gospel’

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com