Swiss Court Rejects Vatican Bank’s Appeal to Keep Account Info Secret
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iStock/Thinkstock(ROME) — Switzerland’s federal criminal court has rejected an appeal by the Vatican to keep information from one of its Swiss bank accounts a secret.
After a request by Italian prosecutors for information about a Vatican bank account held in Switzerland, judges at the Swiss court handed most of it over.
The prosecutors believe the account was used by third parties to launder money from the sale of a company.
The Vatican bank tried to invoke the Vatican’s sovereign immunity in the matter, but the Swiss judges ruled the transactions were not covered by immunity rules.
The decision comes as the U.S. puts increasing pressure on Switzerland to lift the lid on its decades-old secret banking practices.
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