Apparently, the Church has to handle their finances too.
A recent article revealed that the Vatican's economy minister has admitted that hundreds of millions of euros were found "tucked away" in accounts of various Holy See departments without having appeared in the city-state's balance sheets.
Britain's Catholic Herald Magazine was published on Friday, the Australian Cardinal George Pell stated that the recent discovery meant overall Vatican finances were in actual better position than what was previously believed. He wrote, "We have discovered that the situation is much healthier than it seemed, because some hundreds of millions of euros were tucked away in particular sectional accounts and did not appear on the balance sheet."
The Australian Cardinal continued, "It is important to point out that the Vatican is not broke ... the Holy See is paying its way, while possessing substantial assets and investments." He did not stress nor suggest any wrongdoing from the Vatican but the departments for a long time had "an almost free hand" with their finances. Pell added, "Very few were tempted to tell the outside world what was happening, except when they needed extra help." He also said that it was "impossible for anyone to know accurately what was going on overall,"
The Australian Cardinal's office had forwarded a letter to all the departments of the Vatican just last month about changes in the economic ethics as well as accountability.
Pell wanted reforms and as of January next year, all the departments will have to enact "sound and efficient financial management policies" and also be prepared on the financial information and reports that needs to meet international accounting standards. The financial statements of all the departments will be subject to review by a major international auditing firm.
Ever since the Pope's election in March of 2013, the Vatican has enacted major reforms to comply to international financial standards as well as prevent money laundering. It has already closed a handful of suspicious accounts at its scandal-rocked bank.
