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The story
Founded by Giuseppe Tovini in 1896, in Milan.1
Private company
Banco Ambrosiano
Logo: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons3
Defunct Italian bank (1896–1982)
Banco Ambrosiano (Italian pronunciation:; lit. 'Milanese Bank') was an Italian bank that was established in 1896 and collapsed in 1982. The Vatican-based Institute for the Works of Religion, commonly known as the Vatican Bank, was Banco Ambrosiano's main shareholder.2 It was founded by Giuseppe Tovini.1 It is part of Institute for Works of Religion.1 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0
Last updated Oct 21, 2026.
Overview
1896Founded1
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Banco Ambrosiano (Italian pronunciation: [ˈban.ko am.broˈzja.no]; lit. 'Milanese Bank') was an Italian bank that was established in 1896 and collapsed in 1982. The Vatican-based Institute for the Works of Religion, commonly known as the Vatican Bank, was Banco Ambrosiano's main shareholder.2
Corporate structure
Banco Ambrosiano is part of a group headed by Institute for Works of Religion. 3 entities, 2 countries on record. Switch between the flow chart and the network, and select any entity to see its details.
- Institute for Works of Religion Vatican City, Vatican City
- Banco Ambrosiano Milan
- Banco Ambrosiano Veneto Sud Subsidiary · Naples, Italy
- Banco Ambrosiano Milan
Built from parent and subsidiary links from GLEIF, the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (CC0); subsidiaries, stakes and holdings from Wikidata (CC0). Each entity in the chart links to its source.
Leadership
Who has led Banco Ambrosiano, and when. Pick a name to see everywhere that person has worked.
197019801990200020102020
- FounderGiuseppe Tovini1
- ChairRoberto Calvi 1975 to 19821
Products and brands
- retail banking
Listed on Wikidata.1
Subsidiaries and ownership
Parent company
From Wikidata.1
Acquisitions
- Succeeded by Nuovo Banco Ambrosiano1
Controversies and legal
Clearstream scandal
Just before the media revealed the Ambrosiano scandal, Gérard Soisson, the manager of the transaction clearing company Clearstream, was found dead in Corsica, two months after Ernest Backes' dismissal from Clearstream in May 1983. Banco Ambrosiano was one of the many banks to have unpublished accounts in Clearstream. Backes, formerly the third-ranking officer of Clearstream and a primary source for Denis Robert's book on Clearstream's scandal, Revelation$, claims he "was fired because (he) knew too much about the Ambrosiano scandal. When Soisson died, the Ambrosiano affair wasn't yet known as a scandal. (After it was revealed) I realized that Soisson and I had been at the crossroads. We moved all those transactions known later in the scandal to Lima and other branches. Nobody even knew there was a Banco Ambrosiano branch in Lima and other South American countries."
As of 2005, the Italian justice has opened up again the investigation concerning the murder of Roberto Calvi, Ambrosiano's chairman, but it asked the support of Ernest Backes and will investigate Gerard Soisson's death, according to Lucy Komisar. Licio Gelli, the headmaster of P2 Masonic Lodge, and the mafioso Giuseppe "Pippo" Calò are being prosecuted for the assassination of Roberto Calvi.
From Wikipedia’s article on Banco Ambrosiano, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4
Timeline
Links
- WikipediaBanco Ambrosiano
- WikidataQ806179
Sources
The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.
- 1WikidataBanco Ambrosiano on Wikidata
- 2WikipediaBanco Ambrosiano on Wikipedia
- 3
- 4
- 5Wikimedia CommonsBanco Ambrosiano photo by Boubloub, CC0