Commenting on the new decree, the head of the Vatican press office, Fr Federico Lombardi noted it's mainly concerned with closer coordination of the financial activities of the Holy See and the many institutes dependent upon it.
Fr Lombardi said the principle novelty of this decree is to reinforce and extend the competency of the Financial Information Authority, charging it with what’s called ‘prudential supervision’ over all entities habitually engaged in financial activities. He added this move is in response to the recent recommendations of Moneyval, the Council of Europe’s anti-money laundering agency
Below, please find the full text of the Holy See Press Office communiqué:
COMMUNIQUÉ OF THE HOLY SEE PRESS OFFICE
MOTU PROPRIO OF POPE FRANCIS
FOR THE PREVENTION AND COUNTERING OF MONEY LAUNDERING,
THE FINANCING OF TERRORISM
AND THE PROLIFERATION OF WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION
1. Today the Holy Father Francis has issued a Motu Proprio for the prevention and countering of money laundering, the financing of terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
2. Pursuant to the steps already taken by Benedict XVI in this area with the Motu Proprio of 30 December 2010 for preventing and countering illegal activities in the areas of finance and currency, today’s Motu Proprio reaffirms the Holy See’s commitment to the goal of preventing and countering money laundering, the financing of terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
3. In particular, the present Motu Proprio:
- broadens the application of the relevant Vatican laws to the Dicasteries of the Roman Curia and to other institutes and entities dependent on the Holy See, as well as to non-profit organizations enjoying juridical personality in canon law and based in the Vatican City State.
- strengthens the supervisory and regulatory function of the Financial Information Authority;
- establishes the function of prudential supervision over entities habitually engaged in financial activities, in response to a recommendation of the MONEYVAL Committee of the Council of Europe, and assigns that function to the Financial Information Authority;
- establishes the Financial Security Committee, whose Statutes are appended to the Motu Proprio, for the purpose of coordinating the competent authorities of the Holy See and the Vatican City State in the area of prevention and countering of money laundering, the financing of terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
From the Vatican, 8 August 2013
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