VATICAN CITY
International Business Times
By Mark Piggott
July 19, 2014
When Pope Francis was elected he promised to make the Catholic Church a “poor church for the poor”, eschewing expensive perks and – allegedly – driving round the Vatican in a Ford Focus.
“It hurts my heart when I see a priest with the latest model car,” the Pope told trainee priests. “If you like the fancy one, just think about how many children are dying of hunger in the world.”
Yet 2,000 years of accumulating wealth and making canny investments means the “poor” church is actually sitting on vast wealth in securities, property, works of art and other assets.
A report in Italy’s L’Espresso claims the Vatican is worth €9-10 billion (£7-8 billion). London assets include shops on New Bond Street including the jewellers Bulgari and a property in St James’s Square.
Other international assets – funded by a huge donation by Italian fascist dictator Benito Mussolini as a thank you for recognising his regime – include places in Switzerland and a home belonging to former French President Francois Mitterrand.
Even the figure of €9-10 billion is believed to be an under-estimate – the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples is said to have holdings of €7 billion.
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