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Pope Francis signed the ‘motu proprio’ (papal document) in which he takes away the management of funds, bank accounts and real estate investments from the Secretary of State, the Vatican said in a statement on Monday.
As of January 1, 2021, these funds will be managed by the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA), a milestone in the reform of the Curia that is being carried out to achieve greater transparency in finances.
The Pope made that decision on August 25 and communicated it to Secretary of State Pietro Parolin in a letter published in November.
The Vatican explained today that with this ‘motu proprio’ Francis reduces the number of economic managers in the Holy See and concentrates the administration, management and economic and financial decisions in the departments (ministries) that have this task.
The funds and investments managed by APSA “will be subject to the ‘ad hoc’ control of the Ministry of the Economy, which from now on will also exercise the function of Pontifical Secretariat in economic and financial matters.”
As of 2021, contributions owed or returned to the Holy See by ecclesiastical bodies of any kind will be entered into an account called “General Budgets of the Holy See”, managed by APSA, which will also be responsible for the payment of ordinary expenses. and extraordinary of State.
The Vatican explains that APSA will constitute a budgetary provision called papal funds that, for greater transparency, will form part of the consolidated financial results of the Holy See.
There will be specific subaccounts for the Obolus of San Pedro, the Discretionary Fund of the Holy Father and the so-called “titled funds”, which have particular objectives by will of the donor or by regulation.
APSA will periodically inform the Secretary of State on the status of the funds.
“With this, the Holy Father wishes to proceed with a better organization of the Roman Curia and an even more specialized operation of the Secretariat of State”, explains the Holy See.
The Pope’s decision is the result of an investigation into the financial operation of the sale of a building in London, for which some employees of the Secretary of State were suspended from their posts, including Tommaso Di Ruzza, director of the Authority of Financial Information (AIF), a body created to combat money laundering.
Francis’ letter precedes the resignation by the Pope of the vice secretary of state (2011-2018) and prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Angelo Becciu, who had to renounce the rights of a cardinal after being involved in this scandal.
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