Holy See: Publication of the APSA Report

In 2022, APSA spent 32.27 million euros to cover the needs of the Roman Curia. This is the most significant figure that emerges from the publication of the 2022 financial report. APSA’s economic bottom-line therefore amounted to “breaking even,” as the contribution paid to the Roman Curia was equal to the surplus revenue achieved.

APSA President, Archbishop Nunzio Galantino, believes that these figures describe “an administration that, like everyone else, has had to and continues to reckon with the effects of the pandemic crisis and the uncertainty arising from the ongoing conflicts.”

Another element that emerges from the reading of the financial statements is the amount APSA has paid in direct and indirect taxes from the management and ownership of real estate in Italy.

In this regard, Msgr. Galantino explains that “the transparency of the number, the results achieved, and the procedures defined is one of the tools we have at our disposal to dispel, at least in those who are free from preconceptions, unfounded suspicions regarding the size of the Church’s assets, its administration, or the fulfillment of the duties of justice, such as the payment of taxes due and other fees.”

On the other hand, observes the Archbishop, “a little over a year after the publication of the Apostolic Constitution Praedicate Evangelium, the nature and tasks assigned by Pope Francis to APSA are becoming increasingly clear.”

“With the cooperation and professionalism of the entire APSA community,” underlines Bishop Galantino, “the process continues to achieve the objectives set out in the three-year development plan.... The objective of everything is the economic support for the mission of the Pope and the structures that, with him, share the task of evangelization.”

It is from the transparency perspective that the report offers an overview of the results obtained and the economic difficulties encountered. In particular, from an economic point of view, the 2022 financial year, following the Covid-19 pandemic period, was also characterized by the “negative financial and economic consequences” arising from the conflict in Ukraine.

Furthermore, APSA is called upon to administer liquid and real assets of the Holy See according to certain purposes. In the first place, the objective is not profit, but the preservation and consolidation of the patrimony received as a dowry. APSA does not wish to pursue speculative ends but to make investments with “lower rates and proven social impact.”

In terms of securities management, APSA's investment policy, according to equally prudent and never speculative criteria, continued to be characterized “by a fitting balance between risk and medium to long term profitability, favoring a prudent asset allocation.”

The result from securities management was -€6.7 million, compared to a positive result in 2021 of €19.85 million. This resulted in a difference of -€26.55 million compared to 2021. Just as the operating costs went from €10 to €13 million.

The financial investments managed by APSA amount to approximately €1.777 million as of December 31, 2022, and include both property management and third-party management (entities of the Holy See or related to it). APSA also manages other activities, including the Peregrinatio ad Petri Sedem, (a papal institution that facilitates travel for pilgrims visiting Rome and other sites throughout the world), which will be called upon to assist pilgrims in the Jubilee Year 2025.