ISTANBUL

The Vatican Bank, officially known as the Institute for the Works of Religion (IOR), launched on Tuesday two new equity benchmarks in the US and the Eurozone, which are "fully aligned with Catholic ethical principles."

IOR announced in a written statement the launch of two new equity benchmarks, which are the "Morningstar IOR Eurozone Catholic Principles" and the "Morningstar IOR US Catholic Principles."

"Both benchmarks, developed in collaboration with Morningstar, a leading provider of independent investment insights and index solutions, are built following market best practices and in accordance with Catholic ethical criteria, and are designed to serve as a reference for Catholic investments worldwide," IOR noted.

The statement noted that the initiative "forms part of IOR’s broader commitment to ensuring that its investment process is fully consistent with Catholic ethical principles."

"The Morningstar IOR Catholic Principles Eurozone Index and the Morningstar IOR Catholic Principles US Index comprise fifty issuers each and are focused on medium- and large-cap companies. They are fully compliant with the IOR Investment Policy and are designed to incorporate future developments in the Institute’s approach to ethical Catholic investing," it added.