Tuesday, September 13, 2005

God's bankers

New details on the Italian banking shenanigans that we posted about a while back. An unsurprising element -- for all its concerns of moral philosophy, the Vatican still keeps its eye on the suits (WSJ, subs. req'd):

In any case, Mr. Fiorani [suspended CEO of Banca Popolare Italiana] continued to talk, and prosecutors continued to listen. In another conversation with Mrs. Fazio [central bank governor's wife], he discussed several wire transfers he was making. One, BPI later explained, was a $6,200 donation to the Legion of Christ. That is a favorite Catholic charity of the Fazios and a group through which a daughter of theirs has just begun the process of becoming a nun ...

At the central bank, Mr. Fazio is unbowed, brushing off calls for him to quit ... Some of Mr. Berlusconi's cabinet ministers remain supporters of the central banker, as does the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, which has said Mr. Fazio is being attacked unfairly.

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