The Vatican Bank recently fired two employees who violated a newly-introduced ban on marriages between staff. The Institute for the Works of Religion, as it is officially called, made the decision to terminate the couple’s employment due to the formation of a married couple among employees contradicting current regulations at the bank. The bank emphasized that the decision was made to preserve transparency and impartiality in its activities and was not meant to question the right of the individuals to be married.
The policy banning marriages among employees at the Vatican Bank is intended to prevent conflicts of interest in an institution with around 100 employees who all work in the same location. The couple had informed the bank of their intention to marry in February, but the new regulations prohibiting such marriages were only adopted in May. Despite having three children together, the couple’s employment was terminated on October 1, which their lawyer, Laura Sgro, has challenged as null, illegitimate, and violating fundamental rights of individuals and workers.
Sgro stated that the couple had appealed for an exemption from the rules to Pope Francis and bank director Gian Franco Mammi, but their requests went unanswered. The Vatican Bank has seen its fair share of financial scandals in the past, prompting Pope Francis to establish an expert committee in 2013 with the aim of recommending reforms to combat financial corruption. Subsequent investigations have led to convictions of high-ranking figures, including Angelo Caloia and Giovanni Angelo Becciu, for money laundering and embezzlement.
Angelo Caloia, the former head of the bank, was sentenced to nearly nine years in prison for financial crimes, making him the highest-ranking Vatican official to be convicted. Giovanni Angelo Becciu, a cardinal, was handed a five and a half year jail sentence for embezzlement, becoming the first cardinal to be convicted and sentenced by a Vatican court. Becciu has denied the charges and plans to appeal the convictions, further highlighting the ongoing efforts to address financial misconduct and promote transparency and accountability within the Vatican’s financial management.
