Reported by BEN MUNSTER

(Excerpt shared below. To read full report, go to: https://www.politico.eu/article/vatican-financial-obscure-transactions-claims-bank-transfers-money-laundering/)

The Vatican is facing allegations it used a “skeleton key for money laundering” by illegally manipulating bank transfers.

The city state’s former top financial cop ― who was forced out in 2017 ― has claimed that its payroll agency was able to alter the names and account numbers on transactions after they were made, masking the identity of recipients and senders.

The implication would be enormous because it would have made it possible for Vatican officials to wire funds to private clients without revealing who they were, possibly enabling unlimited money laundering and violating the most basic anti-fraud rules.

The claims come at an awkward moment for new Pope Leo XIV as he seeks to boost the Catholic Church’s reputation after decades of rolling financial scandals and a looming budget shortfall.

The Vatican denies all the allegations and people familiar with SWIFT, the organization that facilitates international bank transfers, say what the Vatican is being accused of is technically impossible. Yet, the allegations are being taken seriously because of the credibility of the people making them and because of the Vatican’s history of misconduct.