Maltese cleric to be Pope’s ear on Vatican bank

Pope Francis has appointed Maltese cleric Alfred Xuereb as a delegate of the commission for the Vatican Bank IOR and delegate to the Holy See's economic administration unit.

Xuereb is currently the Pontiff's private secretary.

Xuereb will be the Pope's liaison on the work carried out by the Vatican Bank and the commission overseeing the work of the Vatican's finance unit, which were both set up by Francis to carry out much-needed financial reforms.

The commission overseeing the Holy See's economic administration is also led by a Maltese, economist and former Bank of Valletta chairman Joseph F.X. Zahra.

Zahra is president of the new Economic Commission constituted by Pope Francis, which is in charge of assessing the economic and administrative structure of the Holy See. The Commission's members are experts and businessmen of all nationalities.

The main goal is to reach further 'simplification' and 'transparency' in Vatican departments, but also better planning of all economic and the administrative activities of Holy See offices. The Commission will directly address the Pope when considering reforms of Vatican's institutions.

In particular, Pope Francis wants Vatican institutions to have a simpler structure, making sure the offices avoid unnecessary expenses, and that all business deals are made with a high degree of transparency.

The Commission is made up of seven lay experts in economics and law, plus Mons. Lucio Angel Vallejo Balda, who serves as secretary. The President is Joseph F.X. Zahra, from Malta. Other members include Frenchmen Jean-Baptiste de Franssu and Jean-Videlain Sevestre, Spaniard Enrique Llano, Jochen Messemer, from Germany and Francesca Immacolata Chaouqui, from Italy. The only non-European member is George Yeo, from Singapore.