Before Pope Francis passed away, he sought to reform the Vatican Bank which has reportedly been riddled with corruption for decades.
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00:00The Vatican Bank oversees more than $6 billion in assets, but its history has been shrouded
00:05in secrecy, scandal, and disastrous investments.
00:09After he was named head of the Catholic Church in 2013, Pope Francis sought to reform the
00:14bank and the Holy See.
00:15Created in 1942, the Institute for the Works of Religion, commonly known as the Vatican
00:20Bank, manages funds for clergy and church organizations around the world.
00:24However, for years the bank was allegedly plagued by money laundering, corruption, and
00:29even Mafia connections.
00:31Pope Francis tried to root out the bank's corruption and bring more transparency to the organization.
00:36In 2013, the bank began releasing annual reports for the first time, outlining its profit, operational
00:42costs, and charitable giving.
00:44Francis also diminished the power of clergy members in economic affairs by appointing a
00:49French financier to oversee the bank, and ordering all Vatican departments to close their investment
00:54accounts and send their funds to the Vatican Bank.
00:57Pope Francis' changes at the Vatican came in response to several scandals, including the
01:02collapse of Italy's largest bank, Banco Ambrosiano, in which the Vatican Bank had a financial stake.
01:08Despite Pope Francis' changes, the Catholic Church has said that the Catholic Church has