Pope Francis has announced he will intensify his fight against corruption at the Vatican by strengthening supervision of the Vatican Bank through a special commission of inquiry to investigate and oversee the Institute for the Works of Religion, or IOR, the formal name of the Vatican Bank.
Using a “Motu Proprio,” a decree issued at his own initiative, Francis announced Aug. 8 he was authorizing the Vatican’s Financial Information Authority to have increased supervisory powers over the Vatican Bank and other Vatican departments involved in financial activities.
The move followed a decision announced Aug. 2 by HSBC bank in London to close the Vatican Bank’s account along with the accounts of dozens of diplomatic accounts....