Jul 1, 2022
Bain Capital Buys London Building at Center of Vatican Scandal
Bloomberg News
,(Bloomberg) -- Investment firm Bain Capital agreed to purchase a building in London at the center of an alleged fraud against the Vatican.
The Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See said on Friday it had completed the sale of a building at 60 Sloane Avenue, in London’s upscale Chelsea district, for 186 million pounds ($223 million).
Former Cardinal Angelo Becciu, who served as chief of staff in the Vatican’s secretariat of state, is among the defendants in a Vatican trial on the case. The people are accused of offenses including fraud, embezzlement, abuse of office, money-laundering and corruption.
Losses incurred with respect to the amount spent on the purchase of the building were transferred to the reserve of the Secretariat of State, without in any way affecting Peter’s Pence, the fund which collects donations to the pope for charity purposes, the Vatican said. Broker Savills acted as adviser, according to the statement.
The Vatican in 2018 spent some 350 million euros ($364 million) for the building, a price tag allegedly inflated by extra charges. It had been bought for 129 million pounds six years earlier.
Italian businessman Gianluigi Torzi was accused fraud and money-laundering in connection to the deal. He should be extradited to Italy, a UK judge ruled in December.
Originally developed as a car showroom for the Harrods department store, the building spans more than 170,000 square feet (16,000 square meters) of offices and retail space with a neo-classical terracotta facade.
Read more: Italian Faces Extradition in Scandal Over Vatican’s Chelsea Deal
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