[ by Melanie Gretchen ] Doing God's work doesn't cut it - and we're not talking about Goldman Sachs.  The Vatican had its account closed at JPMorgan after the state failed to be included in the European "white list" of countries that comply with international standards against tax fraud and money laundering.  Last month, the church state made the U.S. State Department's list of money-laundering centers, prompting the bank, known as the Institute for Works of Religion to undergo a major effort at reform in 2011. Closing Out the Vatican. JPMorgan Chase told the Vatican's bank, the Institute for Works of Religion (IOR), that it would close the account because the Milan branch felt it had not provided enough information on money transfers, the Italian financial daily Il Sole 24 Ore reported.  In fact, the newspaper identified the Vatican account as a sweep facility, whereby all funds transferred to another IOR account in Germany at the end of the day. Phasing out of the account began on 3/16/12 toward its 3/30/12 closure.  Up until then, Italian investigators had frozen €23 million ($33 million) in 2 Italian banks in September 2010 over money laundering concerns, to which IOR said it was merely transferring money between accounts, before the funds were released in June 2011.  An investigation continues. Overhaul. Prior to following the rules of Financial Action Task Force, based in Paris, the Vatican's IOR was the main shareholder of Banco Ambrosiano, thought to be linked to the death of Pope John Paul I, who was planning a reform of Vatican finances. Let's see if the Vatican can do the Financial Action Task Force's work. For further details, go to [AdvisorOne, 3/20/12].