Vatican Bank Launches Two Equity Indexes Based on Catholic Social Teaching
The Institute for the Works of Religion, commonly known as the Vatican Bank, has announced the creation of two new equity indexes developed in collaboration with Morningstar Indexes, marking a significant step in promoting investment strategies aligned with Catholic social teaching.
According to a statement released on 10 February, the new benchmarks are titled the Morningstar IOR Eurozone Catholic Principles and the Morningstar IOR US Catholic Principles. Each index includes 50 medium and large capitalization companies selected under criteria drawn from the IOR’s investment policy, which is rooted in the social doctrine of the Catholic Church.
The Vatican Bank said the indexes are intended to serve as reference points for institutions and investors seeking to measure performance in a way that reflects Catholic ethical standards. Companies included in the benchmarks are screened to ensure compliance with Church teaching, while those engaged in activities considered inconsistent with Catholic principles are excluded.
The initiative is designed to support dioceses, religious congregations, Catholic foundations and other faith based investors who wish to align financial decisions with moral and social considerations. The IOR indicated that the new indexes will provide a transparent and structured framework for evaluating investments according to standards concerning human life, social responsibility and environmental stewardship.
Robert Edwards, managing director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa at Morningstar Indexes, said demand for value based benchmarks has grown as investors increasingly look for tools that reflect specific ethical or policy driven criteria. He emphasized that the methodology applied to the new Catholic principles indexes follows a rules based approach intended to ensure consistency and objectivity.
Giovanni Boscia, deputy director general and chief financial officer of the IOR, described the launch as part of a broader effort to adopt international best practices while remaining faithful to Catholic teaching. He said having clearly defined benchmarks grounded in recognized ethical criteria strengthens both performance assessment and reporting transparency.
The development builds on recent Vatican initiatives aimed at guiding responsible investment. In 2022, the Holy See published Mensuram Bonam, a document offering practical guidance for Catholic investors to integrate social doctrine into financial decision making, including attention to the impact of economic activity on vulnerable populations.
The Vatican Bank’s latest annual report showed a net profit of 32.8 million euros in 2024, reflecting a 7 percent increase over the previous year. The institution attributed its financial results to structural improvements, recruitment of specialized personnel and investments in digital and technological infrastructure.
By introducing the new indexes, the IOR positions itself as a global reference point for Catholic aligned finance, seeking to combine financial performance with adherence to the ethical principles that underpin the Church’s social teaching.
