Italian cardinal named president of Vatican bank oversight commission

Cardinal Giuseppe Petrocchi, the retired archbishop of L’Aquila, Italy, has been appointed president of the Cardinalitial Commission of the Institute for the Works of Religion (IOR), commonly known as the Vatican bank.

Petrocchi succeeds Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, the retired archbishop of Vienna, who has led the commission since 2014 and is stepping down after reaching the age limit.

In a statement, the commission thanked Schönborn “for his valuable leadership and for the commitment with which he supported and accompanied the institute during decisive phases of its reform process over the 12 years of his mandate,” adding that his service helped ensure guidance consistent with the institute’s mission.

Schönborn, for his part, expressed “profound gratitude” to Pope Francis for his “constant and enlightened support” during the IOR’s “long and demanding” reform process. He also thanked the bank’s director general, Gian Franco Mammì, and the institute’s leadership and staff as well as the supervisory board chaired by Jean-Baptiste de Franssu for guiding what he described as a far-reaching transformation that has earned broad recognition within the international financial community.

Petrocchi said he has witnessed “important developments” carried out by the institute in service of the Holy Father and the universal Church, and said the commission and the supervisory board will continue that work with an emphasis on continuous improvement, collaboration, and respect for Catholic ethics, transparency, and shared responsibility.

At the same meeting, the commission welcomed Cardinal Ángel Fernández Artime, pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, who was recently appointed a member of the commission by Pope Leo XIV.

The Cardinalitial Commission oversees the IOR’s fidelity to its statutes. It is composed of five cardinals appointed by the pope, who designate one of their members as president. Members serve five-year terms and may be confirmed once.

In addition to Petrocchi and Fernández Artime, the commission includes Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle, and Cardinal Emil Paul Tscherrig.

This story was first published by ACI Stampa, the Italian-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.