Minister for Finance Edward Scicluna addressed the members of the Institute of Financial Services Practioners at a conference entitled, ‘Striking a balance for financial services, regulation and competitiveness’.

Minister Scicluna said that regulators and regulatory institutions need to be strengthened not destroyed or damaged. He referred to the AML/CFT work plan in this regard:

“We carried out an enhanced national risk assessment that gave us a 3-year plan with 50 tasks to be implemented in order to reduce any weaknesses in our financial environment. I would leave it to historians to judge whether, in the aftermath of events which concerned foreign jurisdiction, it was necessary to drag into the fray the banks, the MFSA, the FIAU, the courts, and the whole gamut of the rule of law. In the meantime, the government has set up a national co-ordination committee to address each issue.”

The Minister for Finance emphasised that tax competition is still recognised as important for economic growth in many countries around the world and not just in Malta.

Monday 25th February 2019