Holy See: Asset Management Generated Nearly 50 Million in Profits
The 2023 balance sheet of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA) was made public on July 29. The organization contributed to covering the needs of the Roman Curia for more than 37.9 million euros. Archbishop Giordano Piccinotti, its President, is pleased with these results, and the efficiency of the services, according to the Vatican News report.
After the good results of the IOR, APSA made a profit of 45.9 million euros. As Vatican News reports, “This made it possible for APSA to contribute 37.9 million euros to the Pope's mission by supporting the Roman Curia (compared to 32.27 million euros in 2022), and to increase its assets by 7.9 million euros.”
Archbishop Piccinotti explains that these results “have been achieved with the conviction that we have to work constantly to increase the income stream to cover expenses, but without affecting the Holy See's assets or requiring the sale of institutional properties.” An economic surplus of 27.6 million euros was recorded in the management of movable assets in 2023.
APSA also “provided consulting, financial solutions, and access to capital markets for the Dicasteries of the Curia and other entities of the Holy See, with the aim of diversifying investments and spreading risk while generating the best possible return within the Investment Committee's mandate.”
The investment policy aimed to ensure “a proper balance between risk and medium- to long-term profitability. Given uncertain economic conditions in 2023, a more defensive approach was adopted.”
APSA manages 4,249 real estate units in Italy, “of which 92% of the real estate is in the Province of Rome. In Rome, the greatest concentration is in areas immediately adjacent to Vatican City State. [...] There are approximately 1,200 real estate units managed abroad [...] and in Italy by subsidiary companies.” This property management presents a surplus of 35 million euros for 2023.
Archbishop Piccinotti specifies that the organization that he manages “plans and carries out various improvement initiatives in compliance with the Church's ethical values. In 2023, the management programme in use for the real estate sector was further implemented; compliance with the regulations of the New Procurement Code saw the adoption of the new management system for the Purchasing Office.”
Finally, in the future, the Vatican organization intends to “embark on a path to adjust the number of resources in order to effectively deal with new administrative responsibilities in view of APSA’s being entrusted with management of the real estate of other entities of the Holy See,” Archbishop Giordano Piccinotti emphasizes.
(Source : Vatican News – FSSPX.Actualités)
Illustration : Média Vatican
