(By John Phillips).
The Vatican financial
authority said Friday the number of suspicious financial
transactions involving the tiny city state has tumbled and that
the Holy See hopes an agreement with the Bank of Italy will turn
the page on relations with the Italian central bank.
In its annual report, the Financial Intelligence Authority
of the Holy See and the Vatican City State (FIA) termed 2014 "a
year of stabilization".
Seven potential cases of attempted fraud or tax evasion
were forwarded to authorities last year, down from eight in
2013, officials said. The report suggests new anti-money
laundering procedures are working.
The FIA said it recorded 147 reports of suspicious
transactions last year, significantly down from as many as 202
recorded in 2013.
The director of the Vatican's financial authority, Tommaso
Di Ruzza, said he hopes to have a deal with the Bank of Italy
shortly.
"We hope to formalize cooperation and information exchange
before long," he said in releasing the 2014 annual report.
Relations with the Italian central bank had been strained in
the past when the Vatican Bank, the Institute for Religious
Works (IOR) had previously failed to comply with international
standards on money-laundering and other financial crimes.
"By signing Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with the
financial intelligence units and regulators of 13 countries,
including Australia, France, Germany, Luxembourg, the UK and the
United States, we have also massively strengthened international
cooperation," said AIF chief René Brülhart.
The Vatican reporting system has been consolidated after
having received just six suspicious transaction reports (STR)
in 2012, 202 in 2013 and 147 in 2014, he added.
Such development "is a consequence both of the full
implementation of the legal framework and of the substantial
improvement in the operational performance of the supervised
entities with regard to the prevention of financial crime."
"This continuous increase is a result of the systematic
efforts undertaken by FIA as well as the strong commitment of
the Holy See and the Vatican City State to cooperate actively
with other jurisdictions to prevent and combat potential illicit
financial activities globally," said Di Ruzza.
Since 2012, the number of declarations of outgoing cash
above the amount of 10,000 euros has steadily decreased from
1,782 in 2012 to 1,557 in 2013 and 1,111 in 2014.
This is due to an increased monitoring by the competent
authorities and the introduction of reinforced procedures at the
supervised entities, the FIA said.
In the first trimester of 2014, FIA conducted the first
ordinary on-site inspection of the IOR "to verify the
implementation of the measures taken to prevent and counter
money-laundering and the financing of terrorism".
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