The director of the Vatican bank, known as the Institute for Religious Works (IOR), and his deputy have resigned amid a growing financial scandal. Last week, a Vatican accountant, Monsignor Nunzio Scarano, was arrested while allegedly attempting to smuggle $26 million into Italy without claiming it to customs officials. According to a wiretapping investigation, Scarano had regular contact with the bank’s director and deputy director to receive approval to move massive amounts of cash.
The bank has longed been plagued with scandals and shady financial dealings—including the disappearance of more than $1 billion worth of loans in 1982, and a money-laundering scheme in which more than $30 million was seized by Italian police in 2010. Recently, Pope Francis formed a commission to investigate the IOR’s dealings to make sure they were in line with the Church’s mission …
