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The Financial Information Authority (Italian: Autorità di Informazione Finanziaria, or AIF) is an institution connected to the Holy See and a canonical and Vatican civil juridic person established by Pope Benedict XVI on 30 December 2010. The president of the AIF is René Brülhart, the first lay person in this position.
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The authority, according to the new Statute approved by Pope Francis on 15 November 2013, is the competent authority of the Holy See and the Vatican City State in charge for financial intelligence and supervision, including both anti money laundering and combating financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) and prudential supervision, of the entities carrying out financial activities on a professional basis, as established by articles 2 and 52 of the Vatican Law no. XVIII of 8 October 2013.
On 5 June 2014, Pope Francis appointed Tommaso Di Ruzza, legal counselor of the Holy See and senior officer in charge of the legal and international matters for the authority since the beginning of its functions in 2011, as the authority's interim Vice Director and also completely replaced the members of the authority's Board. As of 5 June 2014, the Board members are: Dr. Bianca Maria Farina, managing director of the Italian insurance company Poste Vita; Dr. Marc Odendall, a financial consultant for the philanthropic sector in Switzerland; Joseph Yuvaraj Pillay, Chairman of the Board of Consultors to the President of the Republic of Singapore; and Dr. Juan Zarate, senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C..
In 2013 the AIF became a full member of Egmont Group, an international network of Financial Intelligence Units.
The AIF has its seat in Palazzo San Carlo, Vatican City, close to Domus Sanctae Marthae.