Prime Minister, vows to ‘redouble efforts’ to get off FATF grey list
In an interview organised by FinanceMalta, Prime Minister Robert Abela said that he is "heartened" by positive reviews given by rating agencies regarding the country's fiscal and economic status, as he also vowed efforts will be "redoubled" so that Malta gets out of the
Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list.
Recently, Malta was placed under the FATF grey list, which could mean that the country does not remain attractive to foreign investment if not addressed soon. However, the Prime Minister remains positive that Malta can get off the grey list as soon as possible.
The Prime Minister said that while the Government recognises and is working towards implementing the agreed action plan with FATF, he is "heartened by the positive signals already sent by two of the four rating agencies that rate Malta."
"DBRS has confirmed our A rating, while Fitch has issued a press release to state that we will retain our A plus rating. In addition, the European Commission has also indicated its trust in our economy by upgrading our forecast economic growth by twice the amount it upgraded its forecast for the rest of the European Union,"
Abela said that the Government is taking the FATF remarks seriously. The country is "redoubling [its] international efforts to successfully implement further reforms that boost resources to regulators, the courts, and our investigative and prosecutorial authorities."
"Our economic vision shows clearly that good governance is one of the five pillars of our division. Similarly, in our recovery plan, we specifically have a priority area dedicated to this, we will be allocating another 10 million euros to strengthening institutions," he said.
Among other things, the Prime Minister remarked that the digitalisation of the justice system, the permanent Commission Against Corruption and the Asset Recovery Bureau would also be strengthened.
Abela noted that he considers the financial sector as a "very valid and important contributor to the nation's prosperity" while also remarking that it forms an essential part of the diversification of the economy of Malta.
"To give one example, why our economy contracted by 7% due to the pandemic financial services rose by 6%. financial services firms generate substantial numbers of high-quality employment for our graduates. Also, having a good financial services sector is a pull factor for foreign direct investment,"
Asked about the ever-changing regulations the finance sector faces, the Prime Minister said that this is a reality the country must accept. Although the digital transition offers excellent opportunities, it has also created other risk factors.
"While in recent years, most of the effort to regulate the sector came in terms of the promulgation of new legislation, we are now more in the area of enforcement. While there is room for the authorities to improve, here, the onus will increasingly be on financial services providers," he added
Green finance is another area where the Prime Minister believes needs to be given more importance. "We are at the cusp of a veritable Green Revolution. Are financial services firms ready for this? Do they have the tools to provide access to finance for investments? Are they thinking of how to change that investment and financial strategies to take advantage and support the Green Revolution?" he asked.
However, Abela remained optimistic that this industry will benefit from getting the Government's necessary attention to cater to their needs and changes that occur within the industry.
"The Maltese economy has doubled in size and offers huge opportunities to financial services firms. Therefore, I believe that catering more for the needs of operators located in Malta could be a winning formula both for financial services firms and for the economy as a whole,"