Opus Dei (“Work of God” in Latin) popped into international headlines on Monday as the religious group founded in Spain in 1928 and approved by the Catholic Church in 1950 was “accused” of controlling the Spanish financial elite including O2's parent company Telefónica or the popular department store chain El Corte Inglés.

The financial news agency Reuters picked up on a report after the beatification of Alvaro del Portillo who led Opus Dei 20 years ago and suggested that although the religious organization's “importance seems to have declined, they still do occupy important posts in companies, banks and law firms”.

The article titled “Holy smoke” reported that the beatification was sponsored by large companies such as Telefónica and El Corte Inglés. “It's list of patrons reads like a who's who in Spanish business”, the article proclaimed.

The Reuters report says that Opus Dei has approximately 90,000 members with a third of them residing in Spain, although the organization is known for maintaining its secrecy which makes exact numbers difficult to calculate.

The news agency highlighted the “well-known” membership in the group of Banco Popular chairman Luis Valls until 2004 or several of Spanish dictator Francisco Franco's ministers. Also noted was its influence in educational circles such as the University of Navarra's IESE business school - which is defined in the article as “Spain's most elite business school”.