Finance
Pope’s plea to cardinals marks latest step in long-running financial reform
ROME – A new letter to cardinals asking them to tighten their belts, help the Vatican seek new resources and exhibit an ethos of generosity, all towards the goal of a “zero deficit,” marks the latest move in Pope Francis’s long-running goal of financial reform.
In a letter to the College of Cardinals signed Sept. 16 and published Sept. 20, Pope Francis spoke of his 10 years trying to overhaul the Roman Curia, the Vatican’s central governing bureaucracy, which culminated with the publication in 2022 of Praedicate Evangelium, which outlines the new structure and roles of Vatican departments and their officials.
“Despite the difficulties and, at times, that temptation of immobility and rigidity in the face of change, the results achieved in these years have been many,” he said, and thanked the cardinals for their role and support in his reform efforts.
The pope said he would now like to focus on one of the topics that received the most attention in the general congregations prior to the 2013 conclave that elected him: namely, “the financial reform of the Holy See.”
“The past years have demonstrated that the requests for reform urged in the past by many members of the College of Cardinals have been far-sighted and have allowed us to acquire a greater awareness of the fact that the economic resources at the service of the mission are limited and must be managed with rigor and seriousness,” he said.
This, he said, must be done in order to ensure that “the efforts of those who have contributed to the patrimony of the Holy See are not wasted.”
For this reason, he said, “a further effort is now required from everyone so that a ‘zero deficit’ is not just a theoretical objective, but an actually achievable goal.”
Francis said the curial reforms he has carried out so far have laid the groundwork for “ethical policies” that improve the financial performance of existing assets, and he urged the institutions of the Holy See to seek external resources to cover operating costs, ensuring transparency and responsibility.
Pope Francis said the church must set an example in cost reduction, “so that our service is carried out with a spirit of essentiality, avoiding the superfluous and carefully selecting our priorities, encouraging mutual collaboration and synergies.
To this end, he urged those who are better off financially to help those who are in need, saying entities with a surplus “should contribute to cover the general deficit.”
“This means taking care of the good of our community, acting with generosity, in the evangelical sense of the term, as an indispensable prerequisite for asking for generosity also from the outside,” he said.
Pope Francis closed asking the cardinals to welcome his message with “courage, a spirit of service, and to support the ongoing reforms with conviction, loyalty, and generosity.”
The pope’s plea comes after several embarrassing financial scandals have rocked the Vatican in recent years.
Last year a mega-trial featuring the first-ever cardinal to be indicted and charged by the Vatican’s own court, Italian Cardinal Angelo Becciu, came to a close after more than a year. The trial centered around a $400 million investment into a London real estate venture that ended up costing the Vatican over $200 million.
The scandal surrounding the London property deal exposed both the incompetence of the Vatican officials managing the Holy See’s money, as well as the corruption of some of its business associates, with monsignors inside the system signing away controlling shares while agreeing to pay inflated fees to disreputable Italian financiers.
In recent years the Institute of Religious Works (IOR), also known as the Vatican Bank, has also faced pressure over the seizure of some $33 million in assets by three companies who sued the IOR over its withdrawal from an investment deal.
Many new laws implemented by the pope came amid the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, as Francis faced increased pressure over a mounting economic crisis, including significant debts to its pension fund as well as pressure from European financial watchdogs pushing the Vatican to show improvement in the prosecution of financial crimes.
In 2020 alone, the pope named a new director for the Vatican’s Financial Information Authority, he fired five employees believed to have been involved in the London property deal, and he held various meetings with Vatican department heads to address the Vatican’s financial situation and outline potential reforms.
He also shut down a slew of holding companies based in Switzerland and which were created to manage various portions of the Vatican’s investment portfolio and real estate holdings.
That spring, the pope transferred the Vatican’s “Center for the Elaboration of Data,” which is essentially its financial monitoring service, from the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA) to the Secretariat for the Economy, in bid to create a stronger distinction between administration and oversight.
Francis then issued a new procurement law applicable to both the Roman Curia and the Vatican City State which, among other things, barred conflicts of interest, mandated competitive bidding procedures, required evidence that that contract expenditures are financially sustainable, and centralized control over contracting.
In august of that year, he issued an Ordinance from the President of the Governorate of Vatican City State requiring volunteer organizations and juridical persons of the Vatican City State to report suspicious activities to the Vatican’s financial watchdog entity, the Financial Information Authority (AIF).
Later, in early December 2020, Francis issued new statutes transforming AIF into the Financial Supervision and Information Authority (ASIF), confirming its oversight role for the so-called Vatican bank and expanding its responsibilities.
Shortly after, Francis established a “Commission for Reserved Matters” determining which economic activities remain confidential. The commission itself, which covers contracts for the purchase of goods, property, and services for both the Roman Curia and Vatican City State offices, was part of new transparency laws enacted by the pope in June of that year.
In December of that year, the pope announced the creation of the “Council for Inclusive Capitalism with the Vatican,” a partnership between the Holy See and some of the world’s largest investment and business leaders, including CEOs from Bank of America, British Petroleum, Estée Lauder, Mastercard and Visa, Johnson and Johnson, Allianz, Dupont, TIAA, Merck and Co., Ernst and Young, and Saudi Aramco.
The pope also issued new legislation stripping the Secretariat of State of its ability to independently manage the hundreds of millions the Holy See receives annually in donations and investments, transferring that power to APSA.
Those funds are now consolidated by APSA into the Holy See’s consolidated budget, while the Secretariat for the Economy oversees spending.
Follow Elise Ann Allen on X: @eliseannallen
The FTSE 100 (^FTSE) was hovering around the flatline on Friday, while European stocks headed lower, as traders shrugged off Donald Trump’s latest pause on striking Iran’s energy infrastructure.
On Thursday night, the US president extended the deadline for Iran to open the strait of Hormuz by 10 days, meaning the new date would be 6 April. He claimed that talks were “going very well”. However, Iran denied it was “begging to make a deal”, despite Trump’s earlier claims.
It comes after Wall Street posted its biggest daily loss since the Iran war began on Thursday.
The Wall Street Journal also reported on Thursday that the US was considering sending as many as 10,000 additional troops to the Middle East.
Tony Sycamore, market analyst at IG, said Trump has extended the uncertainty gripping markets.
“While the rhetoric around de-escalation and dialogue is certainly preferable to outright conflict, the market appears to be growing increasingly numb to President Trump’s verbal reassurances. By extending the deadline, it effectively kicks the can down the road, pushing back any concrete resolution regarding the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. This, in turn, simply extends the uncertainty weighing on markets and the broader global economy.”
Elsewhere, UK retail sales dipped by 0.4% in February, following a rise of 2.0% in January, the Office for National Statistics revealed. In the December to February quarter, sales volumes were up 0.7% compared with the previous three months.
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London’s benchmark index (^FTSE) was hovering around the flatline in early trade
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Germany’s DAX (^GDAXI) dipped 0.5% and the CAC (^FCHI) in Paris headed 0.2% into the red
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The pan-European STOXX 600 (^STOXX) was down 0.3%
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Wall Street is set for a muted start as S&P 500 futures (ES=F), Dow futures (YM=F) and Nasdaq futures (NQ=F) were all lacklustre.
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The pound was 0.1% down against the US dollar (GBPUSD=X) at 1.3311
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FARGO, N.D. – North Dakota State University’s College of Business has launched the Center for Banking and Finance, a new academic and industry‑engaged hub designed to prepare students for careers in banking and finance while supporting the evolving workforce needs of the region’s financial industry, a release states.
Announced during a press conference at NDSU’s Louise Auditorium at Barry Hall, the center brings together students, faculty and industry partners to expand experiential learning opportunities, strengthen connections to employers, and address emerging trends shaping the financial services industry. The center is housed within NDSU’s College of Business and builds on growing student interest in finance‑related programs.
“The Center for Banking and Finance reflects NDSU’s responsibility as a student‑focused, land‑grant, research university to respond to workforce and economic needs across our state and region,” said Interim President Rick Berg. “By connecting education, industry, and community, this center helps ensure our graduates are prepared to contribute on day one and throughout their careers.”
The center will support undergraduate and graduate students through hands‑on learning experiences, exposure to financial tools and technologies, and direct engagement with financial institutions, regulators and business leaders. It will also serve professionals already working in banking and finance through workshops, training and research‑informed programming aligned with business needs, according to the release.
“The Center for Banking and Finance is about momentum — students who are eager to learn, faculty who are pushing applied scholarship forward, and industry partners who want to shape the future workforce,” said Kathryn Birkeland, Ronald and Kaye Olson dean of the NDSU College of Business. “When education and industry move together, everyone benefits.”
The launch of the Center for Banking and Finance coincides with a series of regional events focused on finance, fintech and economic outlook, including programming with the Bank of North Dakota, the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis and regional business leaders. Together, these events underscore the Fargo‑Moorhead area’s role as a hub for financial dialogue, talent development and economic collaboration.
The center’s foundational banking partners include Dacotah Bank, Gate City Bank, Bell Bank and Western State Bank, who attended the launch and are helping shape early student experiences and industry-informed programming.
The center is led by Mark Jensen, a career banker and longtime adjunct instructor who joined NDSU full-time in 2026 as director of the Center for Banking and Finance.
“The Center for Banking and Finance is designed as a bridge,” Jensen said. “It brings industry into the learning experience in meaningful ways, and it gives students clearer pathways into a wide range of banking and finance careers.”
For students, the center represents a more direct bridge between academic study and professional opportunity.
“As a finance student, experiences outside the classroom make a real difference,” said Tavian Nelson, a senior at NDSU majoring in finance. “Going into college, I knew I wanted to be involved in the finance program but was unsure of what that would look like once I graduated. The school has truly shaped my desired career outcomes with many hands-on experiences, professional leaders, and connections throughout my time here. This center will truly strengthen these experiences for students.”
Initially, the center will focus on experiential learning opportunities, business partnerships and workforce‑aligned programming, with plans to expand offerings as partnerships and resources grow. The center is supported through external funding and business engagement.
FRANKFURT, March 26 (Reuters) – Euro zone banks have limited direct exposure to the war in the Middle East, but the conflict could still generate systemic stress given interconnected vulnerabilities, European Central Bank Vice President Luis de Guindos said on Thursday.
Financial markets have come under stress in recent weeks from the impact of the U.S. and Israeli war on Iran, but the selloff outside the Middle East has been limited, even as some assets remain overvalued.
“Spillovers to the euro area financial sector have so far remained contained,” de Guindos said in a speech. “Direct bank exposures to the region are limited, and the banking system is well positioned with strong profitability and robust capital and liquidity buffers.”
De Guindos argued that even market infrastructure operators, like central counterparties whose services include energy markets, have managed margin requirements effectively, despite the volatility.
Still, there was a broader risk, given interconnections in the financial system, said de Guindos, whose roles at the ECB include monitoring financial stability.
“Amid already elevated global uncertainty, this conflict could trigger the unravelling of interconnected vulnerabilities and cause systemic stress,” he said.
The conflict threatens to derail market sentiment at a time when asset valuations are high, potentially leading to a sharp repricing of risk for leveraged borrowers and sovereigns while amplifying stress in the non-bank financial sector, he said.
On the ECB’s core mandate of ensuring low inflation, de Guindos repeated the bank’s warning that inflation could rise and growth slow on the conflict but argued more time was needed to understand the full impact.
“We are unwavering in our commitment to ensuring that inflation stabilises at our 2% target in the medium term,” he said.
(Reporting by Balazs Koranyi; Editing by Toby Chopra)
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