Holy See: A culture of responsibility to counter new forms of financial crime
Archbishop Anthony Ekpo called for renewed scrutiny of the Holy See and Vatican City State’s anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorist-financing framework, introduced 15 years ago. Speaking at an international conference at Rome’s Luiss University, Ekpo warned that virtual assets, artificial intelligence, and instant cross-border transactions are creating new forms of financial crime. He said addressing these risks requires strong laws and institutions, effective cooperation, technical expertise, and a culture of responsibility. Ekpo described financial integrity as essential to safeguarding trust in institutions.
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Fifteen years after the Vatican introduced its first comprehensive anti-money-laundering and counterterrorism-financing framework, Archbishop Anthony Ekpo said the Holy See had made substantial institutional progress but must continue scrutinizing and strengthening its financial safeguards. He highlighted emerging risks from advanced financial technologies, virtual assets, artificial intelligence and rapid cross-border transactions, and called for strong institutions, cooperation, expertise and a culture of responsibility. 1 2
Speaking at a financial reform conference at Rome’s Luiss University on Sept. 29, Ekpo—Assessor for General Affairs of the Secretariat of State and president of the Financial Security Committee—revisited the framework established in 2010. On Dec. 30 of that year, Vatican City State enacted Law No. 127, and Pope Benedict XVI extended its application to relevant Holy See institutions while committing to international cooperation and accountability. 1 2
The reforms were introduced amid scrutiny of Vatican-linked banking: EWTN reported that Italian authorities seized €23 million from accounts linked to the Vatican bank in 2010 during a money-laundering investigation, before returning the funds. Benedict also established a Vatican supervisory and financial information authority to address money laundering. 2
Ekpo warned that the financial risks facing the Vatican over the coming 15 years would include increasingly complex financial technologies, instant international transactions, virtual-asset activity, artificial intelligence and other evolving forms of financial crime. He said laws alone would not be sufficient, emphasizing the need for effective institutions, professional judgment, technical expertise and cooperation. 1 2
He urged continued examination of the system even as he acknowledged progress: the legal framework has matured, institutions and oversight mechanisms have developed, and a culture of financial integrity has grown through the work of regulators, financial intelligence specialists, law enforcement, judges and others. 1 2
Ekpo described financial oversight and international cooperation as means of protecting people and preserving trust in institutions. He said the Vatican’s responsibility is especially significant because its institutions administer donations and resources intended for charitable and other legitimate purposes. 1
He also recalled Pope Francis’s 2020 message to Moneyval evaluators, drawing on Evangelii gaudium: money must serve, not govern. Ekpo linked financial integrity to public confidence in how institutional resources are managed. 1
The Holy See’s framework has developed to encompass prevention, supervision, financial intelligence, coordination and international cooperation. The article also describes strengthened rules against money laundering, terrorist financing and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, alongside prudential supervision of financial entities. 1
Pope Leo XIV approved a new statute for the Financial Intelligence and Supervisory Authority (ASIF) in June 2026. In a June 25 chirograph, he affirmed transparency, integrity and accountability as essential to good administration and service to the common good; Ekpo presented the new statute as a further step in strengthening the Vatican’s financial system. 1 2
Ecclesial accountability as the foundation of financial integrity
Ecclesial accountability is not an administrative add-on to financial integrity; it is one of its foundations. Church goods are entrusted for the Church’s mission, not treated as private possessions. Their honest, careful administration should make that mission—especially evangelization and charity—visible.
The Synod’s Final Document connects accountability with transparency, evaluation, and fidelity to mission. It warns that treating authority as beyond scrutiny fuels clericalism, and says those in positions of authority are accountable both to God and to the People of God. Accountability therefore concerns not only whether money was handled correctly, but whether decisions and stewardship serve the Church’s purpose.
In practical terms, this means functioning finance councils; appropriate participation by qualified members of the faithful in financial planning; and accessible annual financial reports, externally audited where possible. These practices are meant to build a culture of shared responsibility, not merely to satisfy paperwork requirements.
Transparency also requires prudence. It does not mean disclosing every private detail: privacy, confidentiality, and the dignity and rights of persons must be respected. But confidentiality must never become a pretext for concealment or evading action against wrongdoing.
Thus, financial integrity is strongest when sound controls are joined to a culture in which leaders explain decisions, communities can raise questions, and resources are visibly directed toward the Church’s mission. The Synod calls for accountability processes adapted to local circumstances, attentive to civil-law requirements, and informed by laypeople with relevant expertise.