Pope Leo XIV encountered typical banking difficulties while trying to update his personal information at his Chicago bank, The New York Times reports.

According to Augustinian priest and longtime friend of the pontiff, Thomas McCarthy, the Pope decided to update the phone number and address on his bank account. He identified himself by his secular name, Robert Francis Prévost, and correctly answered all security questions. However, the call center agent informed him that the change required him to appear in person at a branch.

When the pontiff explained that he would not be able to do this and asked, "Will it make a difference that I am Pope Leo?" the employee immediately ended the call, mistaking the call for a prank.

The pontiff's brother, John Prevost, for his part, told CNN that he was the one who informed the bank employee of the special circumstances of the call. "I said, 'It might be helpful for you to know that you're talking to my brother, who's in Rome. You're talking to the Pope.'" Her reaction was brief: "Oh, really?"—and they hung up.

The problem was ultimately resolved not through the bank's official hotline, but through another priest with direct access to the bank's president. The Vatican has not officially commented on the incident.

The story became widely known after Father McCarthy recounted it at a Catholic gathering in Naperville, Illinois. "Can you imagine being known as the woman who hung up on the Pope?" he remarked.