Malta ‘will survive’ the current severe test on its financial institutions

“Malta’s financial sector is at the moment passing through a severe stress test both locally and internationally but investors from outside believe in us and we will continue to be one of the competitive choices in the Mediterranean.” This was stated by Minister Edward Scicluna during a seminar entitled The Regulatory Changes Ahead organised by the Institute of Financial Services.

Minister Scicluna referred to the e-gaming sector, compliance and regulatory issues, Malta’s tax regime and business transparency as topics which are attracting a lot of attention in the media. He said that we need to take up these issues and address them separately.

The Minister for Finance emphasised the need for our financial institutions to become more efficient. When touching on transparency he mentioned various considerations and changes that are likely to come into force. One of them is the register of companies being accessible to a wide-set of users.

When speaking about data protection, the minister said that what was sacred a few years ago is no longer sacred today, as we have turned to a Facebook culture where confidentiality is now on the defence.

Regarding anti-money laundering, the minister reminded practitioners of their responsibilities in carrying out due diligence on their clients.

Minister Scicluna said that international professional advisors are being engaged to prepare the country for the MoneyVal audit. Here he reiterated the importance of addressing the communication gaps between the various organisations.