VATICAN CITY — Even the pope can have trouble dealing with customer service at the bank, which reportedly hung up on him when he tried to update his account information..
Pope Leo XIV, formerly Chicago-born Cardinal Robert Prevost, was unable to update his contact information with his U.S. bank after being elected pontiff last May because a bank employee insisted he appear in person, according to the Times of London.
The story was shared publicly by Chicago priest Tom McCarthy during a gathering of Catholics in the United States, according to the Times of London.
McCarthy said the future pope had called his bank in south Chicago roughly two months after traveling to Rome for the papal conclave that ultimately elected him leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics. Because of his election, Leo was not expected to return home.
“He’s a very humble guy,” McCarthy said, according to the Times. “Two months in, he calls his bank in south Chicago to change his phone number.”
Answered Security Questions, But…
McCarthy recounted that the pope identified himself as Robert Prevost and answered the bank’s security questions, only to be told company policy required him to appear in person to make the change.
The pope reportedly responded that he would not be able to do that.
“Would it matter to you if I told you I am Pope Leo?” McCarthy quoted him as saying.
According to the Times, the bank employee then hung up on him.
McCarthy said Leo later contacted another priest in Chicago, who reached out to the bank president. After initially citing company policy, the bank ultimately agreed to process the request.
Bank Seeks Forgiveness
“We don’t want to lose the account of the Pope,” the bank president reportedly said, according to McCarthy.
The Vatican did not immediately respond to the Times’ request for comment on the story, which spread widely online after video of McCarthy recounting the incident was posted on social media.
The name of the bank was not revealed.
