The mysterious $6 billion Vatican Bank that Pope Francis tried to fix

Before Pope Francis passed away, he sought to reform the Vatican Bank which has reportedly been riddled with corruption for decades.

Transcript

00:00The Vatican Bank oversees more than $6 billion in assets, but its history has been shrouded

00:05in secrecy, scandal, and disastrous investments.

00:09After he was named head of the Catholic Church in 2013, Pope Francis sought to reform the

00:14bank and the Holy See.

00:15Created in 1942, the Institute for the Works of Religion, commonly known as the Vatican

00:20Bank, manages funds for clergy and church organizations around the world.

00:24However, for years the bank was allegedly plagued by money laundering, corruption, and

00:29even Mafia connections.

00:31Pope Francis tried to root out the bank's corruption and bring more transparency to the organization.

00:36In 2013, the bank began releasing annual reports for the first time, outlining its profit, operational

00:42costs, and charitable giving.

00:44Francis also diminished the power of clergy members in economic affairs by appointing a

00:49French financier to oversee the bank, and ordering all Vatican departments to close their investment

00:54accounts and send their funds to the Vatican Bank.

00:57Pope Francis' changes at the Vatican came in response to several scandals, including the

01:02collapse of Italy's largest bank, Banco Ambrosiano, in which the Vatican Bank had a financial stake.

01:08Despite Pope Francis' changes, the Catholic Church has said that the Catholic Church has