ROME
Reuters
Prosecutors suspect two former Vatican bank executives
* Allegations related to incomplete data on bank transfers
* Transfers alleged to have infringed money laundering laws
* Vatican bank has long been questioned over standards
By Lisa Jucca and Mario Sarzanini
ROME, July 15 (Reuters) – Prosecutors allege two former top executives at the Vatican bank repeatedly broke Italian laws on money laundering by failing to give sufficient information when ordering multi-million-euro bank transfers, according to judicial documents seen by Reuters.
While the prosecutors stopped short of accusing two men who were until recently the top officials at the Vatican bank of money laundering, they said confusion over the handling of IOR accounts had created the conditions where it could take place.
Key details missing on requested transfers included the identity of the owners of the funds and the reason for transfer.
The Institute for Works of Religion (IOR), as the Vatican bank is formally known, has long been in the spotlight for failing to meet international standards intended to combat tax evasion and the disguising of illegal sources of income.
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