The Swiss enforcer tasked with cleaning up the Vatican's money dealings is stepping down. His departure comes following scrutiny of a $150 million London real estate deal by the Holy Sea.
Rene Bruelhart, the overseer of the Vatican's financial intelligence unit, will leave his job this month, a Catholic news outlet reported on Monday. The Swiss-born Bruelhart is an anti-money laundering specialist who was appointed to the division's top role by Pope Francis in 2014 to help force through reforms at its financial arm.
The 47-year-old has been at the center of a Vatican investigation over a $150 million real estate deal in London's Chelsea area. The probe is apparently due to a Vatican turf war between the Vatican bank and the AIF.
Bank vs Enforcer
The investigation pitted bank and overseer on opposite sides of the Holy Sea's sizeable financial assets, which are kept outside the bank and off the Vatican’s balance sheet, according to an Associated Press report. This complicated the financial intelligence's work with other international enforcers, and likely left Bruelhart little choice but to go.
Pope Francis thanked Bruelhart for his service, and appointed a successor who will take his place next week, according to the Vatican outlet. Bruelhart is a director at Hypothekarbank Lenzburg, a Swiss regional lender which has ventured into cryptocurrencies, and maintains a separate consulting firm.
Shutting Accounts
Bruelhart took on a far more international role in Rome. Under his auspices, the Vatican Bank shut nearly 5,000 accounts, and the number of potentially suspicious transactions surged.
Formerly Liechtenstein's top anti-money laundering expert, Bruelhart hit a roadblock earlier this year when he was connected to an investigation of a key figure in the 1MDB scandal. He wasn't accused of wrong-doing.
