Vatican imposes new investment policy amid financial scandal

By NICOLE WINFIELD
Associated Press

ROME (AP) — The Vatican has centralized and overhauled its investment strategy after a botched deal lost tens of millions of euros. The new policy announced Tuesday by the Secretariat for the Economy prohibits investments in products such as pornography and weapons and prioritizes prudent investing in industries that promote the common good. It also bans speculative investments, short selling and investing in highly leveraged or complex financial products or in countries vulnerable to money laundering and terrorist financing. The policy follows a decade of efforts, first by Pope Benedict XVI and then Pope Francis, to clean up the Vatican’s murky finances and its reputation as an off-shore tax haven with little or no expertise or accountability.