The Bank of the Holy Spirit (Italian : Il Banco di Santo Spirito) was a bank founded by Pope Paul V on December 13, 1605. The bank was the first central bank in Europe (as the bank of the Papal States) at a level above city-states, [1] the first public deposit bank in Rome, [2] and the oldest continuously operating bank in Rome until its merger in 1992. [3]
The Bank was founded by Pope Paul V in the Bench of S. Spirit building (which became known as the Palazzo del Banco di S. Spirito) on December 13, 1605. [4] The construction of the building was started in 1513 by Pope Leo X, on what became known as the "Street of the Banks." [5] The newly founded bank provided a new source of income for the Archhospital of Santo Spirito (founded 1201), [6] whose financial difficulties had been increasing throughout the 16th century, and in 1607 the bank began supervising the finances of the hospital, which owned the bank. [2]
From February 20, 1606, to 1923, the Bank of the Holy Spirit provided capital for churches and hospitals constructed in Rome, and other commercial purposes. The bank lent funds to several public works projects, including the Trajan aqueduct project (Begun 1608). [6]
In 1750, Pope Benedict XIV, known for his condemnation of usury: Vix pervenit (promulgated November 1, 1745), reorganized the Bank and restricted its lending activities. In 1786, the bank became one of the first to issue paper money during the pontificate of Pope Pius VI. [7]
The records of the Bank are extant in the Vatican Secret Archives, but not in Introitus et Exitus , the records of the Apostolic Camera. [8]
In 1923, the Bank was reorganized as a joint-stock company. In 1935, the Istituto per la Ricostruzione Industriale (IRI) of the fascist Italian government gained a controlling interest in the bank.
In the 1930s, Neapolitan bank robbers attempting to dig into the underground vaults of the Bank accidentally discovered the skeletons of victims of an 1836 cholera epidemic, which after archeological excavation became known as the Fontanelle cemetery. [9]
In 1992, the Bank of the Holy Spirit—which had previously merged with the Cassa di Risparmio di Roma (est. 1836) in 1989— merged with the Banco di Roma (est. 1880) to form the Banca di Roma, which subsequently merged with other banks in 2002 to form Capitalia. [10]
Pope Paul V, born Camillo Borghese, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 16 May 1605 to his death, in January 1621. In 1611, he honored Galileo Galilei as a member of the papal Accademia dei Lincei and supported his discoveries. In 1616, Pope Paul V instructed Cardinal Robert Bellarmine to inform Galileo that the Copernican theory could not be taught as fact, but Bellarmine's certificate allowed Galileo to continue his studies in search for evidence and use the geocentric model as a theoretical device. That same year Paul V assured Galileo that he was safe from persecution so long as he, the Pope, should live. Bellarmine's certificate was used by Galileo for his defense at the trial of 1633.
Banco Ambrosiano was an Italian bank that was established in 1896 and collapsed in 1982. At the centre of the bank's failure was its chairman, Roberto Calvi, and his membership of the illegal former Masonic Lodge Propaganda Due. The Vatican-based Institute for the Works of Religion, commonly known as the Vatican Bank, was Banco Ambrosiano's main shareholder. The Vatican Bank was accused of funnelling covert United States funds to the Polish trade union Solidarity and to the Nicaraguan Contras through Banco Ambrosiano.
Ponte is the 5th rione of Rome, Italy, identified by the initials R. V, and is located in Municipio I. Its name comes from Ponte Sant'Angelo, which connects Ponte with the rione of Borgo. This bridge was built by Emperor Hadrian in 134 AD to connect his mausoleum to the rest of the city. Though Pope Sixtus V changed the rione limits, so that the bridge belongs now to Borgo, not to Ponte anymore, the area has kept its name and a bridge as its coat of arms.
Borgo is the 14th rione of Rome, Italy. It is identified by the initials R. XIV and is included within Municipio I.
UniCredit Banca di Roma S.p.A. was an Italian bank based in Rome, Lazio region. It was a subsidiary of UniCredit Group. In 2010 the subsidiary was absorbed into the bank, but retained as a registered trademark.
Capitalia was an Italian banking group headquartered in Rome. The bank was a listed company in Borsa Italiana. The bank was acquired by UniCredit by issuing new shares of UniCredit for shares of Capitalia.
Banco di Sicilia was an Italian bank based in Palermo, Sicily. It was a subsidiary of UniCredit but absorbed into the parent company in 2010.
Church of the Holy Spirit in the Saxon District is a 12th-century titular church in Rome, Italy. It is in Borgo Santo Spirito, a street which got its name from the church, placed in the southern part of Rione Borgo. The current holder of the titulus is Cardinal-Deacon Dominique Mamberti. It has been the official sanctuary of Divine Mercy since 1994.
The Hospital of the Holy Spirit is the oldest hospital in Europe, located in Rome, Italy. It now serves as a convention center. The complex lies in rione Borgo, east of Vatican City and next to the modern Ospedale di Santo Spirito. The hospital was established on the site of the former Schola Saxonum, a part of the complex houses the Museo Storico.
Porta Santo Spirito is one of the gates of the Leonine walls in Rome (Italy). It rises on the back side of the Hospital of the same name, in Via dei Penitenzieri, close to the crossing with Piazza della Rovere.
Banco di Roma was an Italian bank based in Rome, Lazio region. It was established on 9 March 1880.
Bipop Carire S.p.A. was an Italian banking group based in Brescia, Lombardy. The group became part of Capitalia in 2002. Capitalia itself became part of UniCredit in 2007, which the brand Bipop Carire was absorbed into UniCredit in 2008. Bipop Carire was formed as a merger of Banca Popolare di Brescia (Bipop) and Cassa di Risparmio di Reggio Emilia (Carire) in 1999.
Palazzo Alicorni is a reconstructed Renaissance building in Rome, important for historical and architectural reasons. The palace, originally lying only a few meters away from Bernini's Colonnades in St. Peter's square, was demolished in 1931 in the wake of the process of the border definition of the newly established Vatican City state, and rebuilt some hundred meters to the east. According to the stylistic analysis, his designer had been identified as Giovanni Mangone, a Lombard architect active in Rome during the 16th century.
Bank of Rome may refer to:
Banca del Mezzogiorno – MedioCredito Centrale S.p.A. (BdM-MCC) is an Italian bank based in Rome, Lazio region. The bank is entirely controlled by Invitalia S.p.A., which in turn is owned by the Ministry of Economy. The bank was specialized in medium-term loan to companies, which developed into corporate and investment banking, and currently specialized in public sector, such as one of the manager of Fondo di Garanzia per le Piccole e Medie Imprese of the Ministry of Economic Development, and European Union's Joint European Resources for Micro to Medium Enterprises Calabria Fund. The bank lend medium-term loan from the fund to SMEs for Italian government and the European Union.
IRFIS – Finanziaria per lo Sviluppo della Sicilia S.p.A. also known as IRFIS – FinSicilia S.p.A., is an Italian development bank based in Palermo, Sicily. The bank is registered under article 106 and 107 of Testo Unico Bancario. The bank provided subsidized loans and intermediates for companies to access government incentives.
Banca Popolare di Brescia S.c.r.l. (Bipop) was an Italian cooperative bank based in Brescia, Lombardy. In 1999 the bank merged with Cassa di Risparmio di Reggio Emilia.
Fondazione Roma formerly Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Roma is a charity organization based in Rome, Italy. The organization was re-founded as a banking foundation in 1991, by spin-off its banking activities to merge with other Roman banks to form Banca di Roma S.p.A.. The foundation remained as a shareholder of UniCredit, the banking group that acquired Capitalia in mid-2007. As at 31 December 2006, the foundation was the second largest shareholder of Capitalia for 5.02% stake.
Cassa di Risparmio di Verona, Vicenza, Belluno e Ancona known as Cariverona in short, was an Italian savings bank headquartered in Verona. In 1991, due to Legge Amato, the bank was split into two organizations, Cassa di Risparmio di Verona, Vicenza, Belluno e Ancona S.p.A. and Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Verona, Vicenza, Belluno e Ancona. They joined Unicredito banking group as founding subsidiary and shareholder respectively. The banking foundation was a minority shareholder of the successor of the banking group UniCredit.
Borgo Santo Spirito is a street in Rome, Italy, important for historical and artistic reasons. From a historical point of view, it is considered the most interesting street in the Borgo district. Of medieval origin, it is linked to the foundation of the ancient fortified hospice for pilgrims from England, the Burgus Saxonum. The street houses the oldest Roman hospital, the Arcispedale di Santo Spirito in Saxia, which gave it its name. Heavily altered during the works for the opening of Via della Conciliazione, it nevertheless avoided the fate of the two parallel streets of Borgo Nuovo and Borgo Vecchio, both destroyed.
| Central bank | ||
|---|---|---|
| Public banks |
| |
| Global banks (Supervised by ECB) | ||
| Nationwide and multi-regional banks (Supervised by ECB) | ||
| Multi-regional (total assets €30b to €8b) | ||
| Multi-regional and regional cooperative bank (Popolari banks) |
| |
| Co-operative banks (BCC) and central banks |
| |
| Regional retail bank |
| |
| others |
| |
| Foreign banks | ||
| Ancient banks | ||
| Related topics |
| |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
