The Pope has denounced the "scandalous" amounts of money which governments and world institutions have found to save ailing banks, but not suffering people, including migrants who are dying as they try to cross the Mediterranean.
Francis branded these policies a "bankruptcy of humanity".
The Pope spoke during a meeting at the Vatican with an international group which included environmentalists, union activists and indigenous rights activists.
In the audience was the former president of Uruguay, Jose Mujica, a defender of the poor.
Francis said: "What happens in the world of today is that when a bank is bankrupt, scandalous sums immediately appear to save it."
He said that while this goes on, much smaller amounts of money cannot be found "to save the brothers that suffer so much".
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