Vatican Kick-Starts Financial Overhaul, Pressed by Scandals, Deficit
Pope Francis has stepped up long-planned overhauls to the Vatican’s finances, after pressure from the pandemic and financial scandals that have battered the Catholic Church’s reputation.
The changes are relatively modest and come more than seven years after Pope Francis was elected with a mandate to reform the Vatican’s finances, following a series of scandals over alleged corruption and incompetence under his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI.
The pope this year centralized the management of investments previously handled by officials in different offices and made new rules on procurement to save money and prevent corruption. The Vatican has also become more forthcoming about its use of donations....