The evolving ecosystem of fintech

What would that look like in practice? Are there any examples of such collaboration in Malta? Fintech gives access to funding and democratises financing for Sids, other developing states and eventually for their governments, banks, private companies, start-ups and individuals. Fintech can be split into four area opportunities. These comprise digital lending, payments, blockchain and digital wealth management.

With small and remote economies, exposed to economic and natural shocks, these are highly vulnerable developing countries. They suffer from low economic diversification (some like Malta are highly dependent on tourism, others are subject to fluctuations in the prices of raw materials on which their economies depend), high dependence on remittances, debt stress situations, as well as volatility of private income flows.

Furthermore, such economies make up two thirds of the countries that suffer the highest relative losses – between 1% and 9% of their GDP each year – from natural disasters and are acutely vulnerable to the increasing impacts of climate change. A common problem for the well-being of any island’s economy is usually the limited space of its territory.

With a lack of space and resources to pursue large-scale industrial or agricultural undertakings, it is a great opportunity for those states to utilise fintech by making use of this new way of financing and by becoming a home for fintech operators. Can Malta succeed to join in the revolution? The answer depends a lot on the foresight of banks, the MFSA and the commercial community.

The future of fintech is increasingly specialised and is dependent on technological progress and innovation. Ideally, Malta aims to establish itself as a global thought leader in the innovative economy, focusing its efforts on supporting the “fintech revolution” and establishing a holistic and robust FinTech sector for both start-ups and industry incumbents. At this stage, we associate another subset of fintech which is becoming quite popular in western countries. Welcome the technology styled: Decentralised Finance (DeFi).

This eliminates intermediaries such as brokerages, exchanges or banks by allowing people, merchants and businesses to conduct financial transactions through emerging technology such as smart contracts. DeFi is being designed to use cryptocurrency in its ecosystem. Introducing Open Banking – This is part of the global trend of the economy based on the use of Api (Application Programming Interfaces). An Api is a software interface that lets information be exchanged between two different applications. Apis provide a standard and safe way for applications to work together and share requested information and functionality without the need for user intervention.

Open banking is also called Api banking because it uses fintech to connect banks, fintech and third-party service providers to give them far richer data and greater functionality. Apis can connect data from banks and nonbanking institutions, process it and send it to third-party applications. The customers can access these applications to view and manage their financial details in a single interface. Integrating financial data with Apis also gives businesses a clearer picture of their customer’s financial situation and risk profile, which helps them offer more personalised products and services.

With its popularity growing among consumers, Open Banking Payments are expected to grow exponentially by 2024. Will Malta catch up on the banking revolution? One augurs that we do not miss the band wagon as this guarantees better service and reduced costs; so many merchants in the western world are starting to add it to their payment mix.

Open Banking is often talked about in conjunction with the (PSD2) Second Payment Services Directive. This piece of EU payments legislation came into full effect in 2019 and is aimed at improving digital payments capabilities and enabling consumers in the EU to have greater control over their financial data. PSD2 has provided a European-wide regulatory framework that allows third parties safe and secure access to accounts to either gather transaction data or initiate payments on the customer’s behalf (with their permission).

While lots of these potential overlay services and innovations are still in the pipeline from fintechs and other service providers, the most immediate advantage of Open Banking is the ability for consumers to use online banking transfers to pay merchants. PSD2 has acted as a catalyst for this by requiring that all banks allow and support authorised third parties (PISPs) to initiate payments.

Conclusion: in light of the recent criticism of Malta’s banking model which leans towards pro-business rather than pro-people, the idea of decentralised banking should be thrown into the ring to democratise financing and lower the burdens of the hoi polloi.

Financial technology aims to compete with traditional financial methods in providing funding for projects and developments. In an ever-changing industry, fintech can help Small Island Developing States (Sids) and developing nations explore new economic development opportunities and alternatives

gmm@pkfmalta.com George M. Mangion is a partner in PKFMalta, an audit and business advisory firm

Today, companies are starting to realise that mismanagement of water can damage their brand and their credibility. Those businesses looking for ways to reduce operational costs can find potential savings in implementing water-saving strategies and technologies.

Alternatively, some businesses might not consider being water efficient as part of their sustainability strategy, perhaps because they would know relatively little about this particular subject and aren’t apprehensive of the expense of the risk of loss. Therefore, getting to know what goes on at your business site is a decisive first step to making processes more efficient and sustainable.

Reducing water usage in business will enhance the company’s reputation

People are seeking high-impact water saving tips for businesses. Nowadays, different types of business firms in Malta are becoming more conscious and sensitive to the need for adopting essential changes, no matter how small, that can make a big difference when it comes to water conservation.

Reducing water usage on the workplace, will not just keep water costs down, but it will also aid and enhance the environmental footprint of any business company, netting a reputation as a conscientious and responsible member of the community. The first step that needs to be done by a business firm targeting to prioritise water usage is to perform a water audit of its building, including the grounds.

Tips for businesses to lessen their water consumption

Business owners and their respective employees should be aware of how much water they are using in order to limit the impact on the environment, since water is a precious resource and needs to be sustained and conserved. Likewise, it is vital to comprehend while finding possible solutions, in both collecting and using fresh rain water and reuse recycled water.

It might be the case that some small businesses will not have the space requirements to do this, however, it’s imperative for those forming part of this sector, to apprehend the necessity to lessen their water usage and participate in water recycling initiatives.

Here are a few tips to help any business firm to get started.

Educate and empower employees

Engage employees in a workplace initiative for sustainable water use and management. Education on water conservation is essential as occasionally we inadvertently waste water in our daily use. Start a workplace challenge, announce updates on your company blog or internal newsletter and boost the entire team to get involved.

Appoint a water conservation champion

Those business companies that assign responsibility to an individual have better results than those that do not. Give someone within the organisation, the responsibility for creating, implementing and maintaining the company’s water conservation programme.

Check your system for leaks

Use the opportunity of periodic shutdowns to monitor water consumption when equipment is not being used. If water consumption increases when water-using facilities are shut off, there must be a leak in the system, which needs to be repaired as soon as possible.

Be aware of water efficient equipment

Be aware that water efficient equipment is available on the market in cases when equipment needs to be replaced or when buying new equipment. Equipment manufacturers are becoming more aware of the need for water conservation and are designing pieces of equipment that require less water use. Examine all of these possibilities.

Monitor your results

Each water bill includes your consumption history. It is possible for you to follow this history and get an immediate idea as to how well you are doing compared to the previous billing period. Another option is to log on www.wsc.com.mt and you will be able to monitor your daily, weekly or monthly consumption, which you can download as a document or image.

WSC Live Authentication

In case for businesses, apart from the latest bill and copy of ID card; a reference letter is required from the company’s directors. The letter should include that the person applying is authorised to view the company’s water consumption chart. These documents must be first vetted before granting access to the consumption chart.

Other simple advices of how anyone can reduce water usage at work are:

• Install low-flow toilets or faucets and aerators –

Installing these upgrades helps occupants use less water without realizing it.

• Turn off water features when not in use

The solutions of how we can improve water conservation in business companies are numerous. Any business can contribute to smarter use of water in ways that are big and small, inside and outside one’s place of work. Suggesting and promoting small things such as turning off taps when lathering hands and making use of reusable water bottles can all add up to improve this cause.

We Make – implement sustainable investments for local business companies

Making businesses more sustainable starts with being aware of the issue at hand and understanding just how important it is to make changes – both for the business and the planet. Recently, an important and significant agreement of co-operation was signed between The Energy and Water Agency (EWA), Malta Business Bureau and The Malta Chamber. Through this agreement, a new project for business to implement sustainable investments was launched, We Make.

With this project, the manufacturing sector can benefit from energy and water audits, offered by EWA, so that businesses can be easily guided on how to enhance their energy and water consumption and operate efficiently. This project is also making available information on various financial investment, where a forum has been created so that businesses can discuss and present best practices in the sector. This forum will lead businesses to have more guidance on how to operate sustainably. Thanks to the We Make project, the manufacturing sector is strengthening the competitiveness of the industry and therefore will increase investment in Malta.

In order to get professional tailor-made suggestions on how to make your business water efficient and guide you on how you can save water, energy and money, log onto www.water.org.mt/audit/. When entering this site, you will get your water audit in three simple steps for free.

For more information, including water saving tips, visit water.org.mt

We many times overlook issues related to when the present leader arrives at the point where he or she does not remain as functional as they used to be. It could be due to age or due to the fact that they lost touch with the fast changing external environment. It is likely that such a leader starts making bad decisions and mistakes, misses opportunities and displays behaviours and attitudes that are inappropriate for their position of power, negatively impacting the people and the business.

This is where things get very tricky.

Pushing out a present senior leader of a family business who is likely to be one of the owners, if not THE owner, is very tricky, making it almost impossible to challenge or even bring up a concern. I have seen very uncomfortable quarrels based on control among “old” and “new” family members in meeting rooms, boardrooms, through emails or worse still in court.

So, what strategies can a family business employ when a leader is no longer capable of leading the organisation in the way they once did? Here are some insights:

• Bring in a trusted third party (consultant) to help make decisions:

Discussions between the present leader and siblings, children or cousins who are concerned