The Vatican was “utterly let down” by an Italian financier over the Catholic Church’s misguided investment in a high-end London property, a judge has ruled following a trial at which a senior aide to Pope Francis gave evidence.
Italian financier Raffaele Mincione’s case was based on the Vatican’s investment in a west London property, which it ultimately sold at a loss of about €140m (£116m) in 2022.
He sued the Vatican at London’s High Court, seeking declarations that he acted “in good faith” in relation to the deal, but the High Court refused.
But the court did grant the vast majority of the declarations Mincione sought and rejected the Vatican’s allegations that Mincione and his companies were involved in a conspiracy to defraud the Vatican.
“I am proud as a British citizen that these matters have finally been examined by a truly independent judicial system which has exonerated me of dishonesty, fraud or conspiracy,” Mincione said in a statement.
The investment led to a long-running corruption trial which exposed infighting and intrigue in the highest echelons of the Vatican, ending with the conviction of a cardinal, Mincione and others in December 2023.
Mincione is appealing against his conviction and has also lodged a complaint with the United Nations’ human rights watchdog.
Archbishop Edgar Pena Parra, a senior aide to Pope Francis, gave evidence at the trial of Mincione’s lawsuit last year.
Mincione and companies in his WRM Group sought various declarations about their agreement with the Vatican, including that they “had acted in good faith in and about the transaction and the negotiation and execution of the contractual documents”.
Judge Robin Knowles said in a written ruling: “On the facts shown at trial the claimants fell below the standards of communication with the state (the Vatican) that could be described as good faith conduct.”
He added: “The state had reason to consider itself utterly let down in its experience with the claimants.
“The claimants made no attempt to protect the state from fraudulent bad actors.”
Mincione welcomed the ruling, saying: “I hope the judgment can lay to rest once and for all claims that I am dishonest, or a fraudster, or a criminal.”
The Vatican did not respond to a request from the media for comment.
