As a Vatican tribunal prepares for the landmark trial of ten defendants involved in a London real-estate scheme, John Allen of Crux reports that the Vatican is involved in a similar case, involving an investment in Hungary.

In Hungary, as in London, Vatican investors—in this the Vatican bank, the Institute for Religious Works—became involved in a complex scheme that resulted in a heavy loss. Lawsuits resulted. In 2017 Cardinal George Pell, then serving as the prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, urged a negotiated settlement; but other Vatican officials rejected that approach. Since that time, the Vatican has been losing court cases.

The history of the transactions is murky, but Allen concludes that “it does suggest a possible pattern – that the Vatican gets into bed with dubious financial brokers, signs agreements they propose, and ends up taking a bath.”