How is the Vatican - the world's smallest business and investment?

Completely surrounded by Rome, the Vatican is the smallest country in the world with an area of ​​only about 40.4 hectares. The Vatican Catholic Church is a spiritual home for more than 1.1 billion people worldwide. It is also a billion-dollar "business corporation" .

The financial picture of the Vatican

For financial purposes, the Vatican operates two semi-independent entities with two functions: acting as a nation and serving missions to support the pope.

The city government is in charge of the administration and operation of Vatican trade services. It is equivalent to an average city government. The government has an abundant source of income of about $ 130 million per year, from the Vatican Museum where the Sistine Chapel is located. Every year, travelers around the world spend about 2.2 million EUR alone to buy gifts from the Vatican.

In 2013, the city spent about 322 million USD and collected 377 million USD, profit of about 45 million USD. Interests of this type have accumulated significant surpluses after many years. But that money is often not available to cover the Vatican's difficulties. City governments often have to use this surplus cash to enhance their pension plans, accumulate to expand and refurbish museums and neighboring buildings.

The Vatican acts as a nation and serves missions to support the pope.

The main problem lies in the Holy See . The Holy See spends a lot but earns little or almost no income.

Vatican Radio, which broadcast papal speeches, as well as providing information about the Vatican, has up to 330 employees and spends $ 37 million annually, while not making $ 1 million fox. The Holy See currently has a deficit of more than half of the budget. The administration of "embassies" - apostolic porcelain, in 113 countries also cost up to 20 million USD.

Swiss guards guard the Vatican.

Nearly two-thirds of the Holy See's budget is used to pay salaries, benefits and pensions for 2,886 people (if it includes the city government, the Vatican owns a workforce of 4,822).

The Vatican pays relatively low salaries but offers generous pension and health benefits to its employees.

Cardinals and bishops in congregations and councils often receive about $ 46,000 per year, although their homes are heavily subsidized. Lower ranks such as nuns and priests are also paid lower than the market, but welfare is very generous.

The average salary for employees from low to medium is about $ 28,000 per year. This figure is 25% lower than the average 37,800 salary of Italian employees working in the same field. But note that Vatican staff do not have to pay personal income tax. Currently, about three-quarters of Vatican employees are employees, lower than nearly 25 years ago. And the Vatican staff hardly ever wanted to leave office before reaching retirement age.

In 2013, the Holy See announced a turnover of 315 million USD and a cost of 348 million USD, creating a deficit of 33 million USD. Accumulated from 2007, the deficit amounted to 56 million USD. Expenditures increased sharply mainly due to the urgent need to handle retirement debts. The Vatican made a pension plan in the early 1960s but still had no real pension fund until three centuries later.

Vatican property

The Vatican is often thought to have a large fortune, but if it is a company, its revenue has not yet reached the Fortune 500. The Vatican's total operating budget is about $ 700 million. The Vatican's most valuable assets - mostly the world's great art treasures - are almost invaluable and not for sale.

Here are the main investments:

1. Investment : List of stocks, bonds and gold worth USD 920 million.
2. Real estate : Holding the amount of real estate worth about 1.35 billion USD, including 2,000 apartments, mainly in Rome.
3. Vatican Bank : Book value is about 972 million USD.
4. Art collection : Value of billions of dollars and cannot be fully priced. The Vatican Museum earns US $ 130 million in revenue each year. The Vatican collection of treasures cannot fail to mention Michelangelo's frescoes (on the ceiling) at the Sistine Chapel; Leonardo da Vinci's "Saint Jerome in the Wilderness" picture; "Deposition From the Cross" , a picture of Caravaggio .

Today, the Vatican holds about 920 million dollars of stocks, bonds and gold. The Vatican's gold reserve was deposited at the US Federal Reserve Reserve, with only $ 50 million left. The Vatican often earns between $ 15 and $ 25 million on the number of securities it holds, most of which are circulated in the currency markets and short-term government bonds.

The Vatican's $ 1.35 billion real estate block comprises about 2,000 apartments, mostly in beautiful locations in Rome, including the old districts around Vatican and the nearby Trastevere neighborhood. Most of them are rented to bishops, priests and staff at a minimum rent. Over the past few years, the real estate portfolio has earned an average of about $ 33 million a year.

However, Catholic churches all over the world are actually units that pay a greater part of the Vatican's operating budget than securities and real estate investments. In 2013, according to Fortune magazine's estimates, funds contributed more than $ 85 million to the Holy See. These funds come from dozens of charities. For example, an organization of Catholic business executives named Legatus pledged to spend 10% of annual bonuses to the Pope, worth about $ 500,000.

To gain consistent profits for the Vatican, a new regime is based on two organizations with great potential for income growth, the Vatican Museum and Bank."These are the two main sources of income for the future," said Zahra, the Maltese adviser to the Vatican.

Museums are the only branches of the Vatican that act as real businesses . In 2017, the Vatican museum witnessed a huge number of visitors - 6 million, more than three times the figure of 30 years ago. Since 2013, the number of tourists has skyrocketed, largely due to Pope Francis's effect. This is one of the most visited museums in the world, just behind the Louvre (France) and the British Museum.

Tourists queued long to visit the Vatican Museum.

Here are 5 things that will surprise you in the Vatican's way of making money and spending:

1. Vatican Bank

The Vatican Bank, which has a net worth of $ 8 billion, is often the center of scandal and corruption since its inception in 1942. Since Pope Benedict took power, he has begun to clean up the banking system and then Pope Francis also continued this work.

The Vatican Bank accounts only mobilize and keep money from citizens of Vatican City and church workers. But according to Gerald Posner, a Vatican banker and author of "The Bank of God" , these accounts are often used secretly by Italian power officials to hide tax evasion amounts.

The bank had to close more than 4,000 accounts to eradicate corruption and now has a total of 33,400 accounts.

The Vatican Bank, officially called the Institute of Religious Studies , has made progress, but there will still be a long way to become more transparent.

2. The balance sheet of the Vatican: to reach more than 1 billion USD

When announcing its 2014 financial statements in July 2015, the Vatican said it had more than EUR 1.1 billion (US $ 1.2 billion - 2015 exchange rate) of assets that had not previously been recorded on the balance sheet. accountant.

As mentioned, the Vatican has two main entities: the Holy See, the seat of the Catholic Church and the Vatican City State, which runs the Vatican City.

The Holy See reported a deficit of EUR 25.6 million (USD 27.9 million) in 2014, despite receiving more than EUR 50 million from the Vatican Bank. The largest cost of the Holy See is to pay 2,880 employees, totaling EUR 126.6 million.

The Vatican City State is in charge of administering the Vatican Museum and in 2014 there was a surplus of $ 63.5 million, almost double the previous year.

3. The Sistine Chapel was also rented - one of them

In October 2014, the Sistine Chapel was leased for the first time to Porsche car manufacturers.

Michelangelo's beautiful frescoes are painted on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

40 Porsche fans paid $ 5,900 to attend a gala beneath Michelangelo's famous mural as part of Pope Francis Charity Art project.

While ordinary customers were only allowed to stay in the chapel for a short period of time, fearing the frescoes were damaged, Porsche guests were treated in a special way, to attend the concert. and a private dinner inside the exhibition area.

Although the money was handed out, the Vatican still held that it did not rent a chapel. " Never was rented because it was not a commercial place, " Monsignor Paolo Nicolini - a Vatican spokesman said.

Instead, he said they "can consider " for private groups.

But don't try to find a way to hire a chapel to open your birthday or wedding party. The events held here are limited to art-related functions.

4. How much does it cost to be canonized?

It costs no money for a priest to be canonized. The Church and the Cathedral of Our Lady of Victory National in Lackawanna, New York have donated more than 250,000 USD in an effort to canonize their priest, Bishop Nelson Baker.

This fund is used for publishing documents about Baker's father, prayer cards, church-keeping contact information with the Vatican, expenses for reciprocating visits to Rome and fees paid to the person in charge. Church rules.

The cost of canonization can vary greatly depending on how long or short this process is and the specific evidence needed to prove a qualified candidate is canonized.

5. Tourists visiting the Vatican City have tripled under Pope Francis

Pope Francis' tourism has nearly tripled since he replaced Pope Benedict in March 2013.

More than 12 million tourists flocked to the Vatican at events involving Pope Francis. And this number does not even include the papal events held outside the Vatican - attracting nearly 13 million more visitors.

Under Pope Benedict's time, about 20.5 million visitors came during his tenure from 2005-2013.

In 2017, visitors visit the Vatican museum and record a record with 6 million people.

Inside the Vatican museum.