Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1056422
maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 28 NOVEMBER 2018 5 NEWS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 "There remains work to be done when it comes to strengthening gaming regu- latory aspects. Rather than the problem being the image which Malta has, I think what we need is to tighten and more strictly regulate certain areas," he added. On a different note, the in- dustry insiders said that al- though the country was mak- ing significant progress in establishing itself as a leader in the gaming industry and the emerging Blockchain technologies market, it was being limited by inadequate infrastructure, property pric- es and a school system which did not offer sufficient stu- dent places. More skilled people Catena Media CEO Jo- hannes Bergh agreed that Malta's regulatory environ- ment was good, but that the industry also required people to work in the sector. "Malta has very limited space and a high cost of liv- ing, which is not working in favour of the industry," Bergh pointed out. He emphasised that foreign gaming workers were coming to Malta with their families, and it was "tough" for them to get their children into schools because of the limited avail- ability of places. "When something grows, you need to add more stuff. You no longer have single people coming here for a few years, but families are coming now, and Malta is not keep- ing up with this new reality," Bergh said. He underlined that it was essential that Malta started training its own people to take up jobs in the gaming, Blockchain and other tech- nology-related sectors. "The long-term issue is peo- ple, and if you educate people, you can get the sustainable advantage locally instead of importing people. I don't see that we find people within tech and other areas locally." Better infrastructure Bradamante backed Bergh's argument saying that Malta had to either provide a better infrastructure or else face the risk of losing potential oppor- tunities "The people coming need to find apartments and schools, and if they don't, they will leave. There are other hubs where the gaming industry is also strong, and they could go there," he said. Degiorgio also echoed these sentiments, saying the skills gap and infrastructure issues had to be addressed. "When you try to recruit a foreigner in your company in- to Malta – because there is a skill gap with locals – they tell you they've heard there aren't enough schools, property is too high and traffic is a prob- lem," Degiorgio remarked. Friendlier banking sector needed Bradamante also flagged the matter of the banking sector in Malta not supporting gam- ing and Blockchain, especially when it comes to the difficul- ties foreign workers encoun- ter when trying to obtain a Maltese residency card and opening a bank account. "Banking is one of the areas which needs improvement. We have been reaching out to financial institutions to understand how we can work better, and we've made some progress, especially related to the ID card and bank account procedures – which have be- come increasingly problem- atic," he said. Corporate banking – which deals with business accounts – is even more of a stum- bling block, he said. "When it comes to corporate banking, the situation is less rosy." As a possible solution, he said there could be the poten- tial for creating an alterna- tive banking system through Blockchain. "It would also be fantas- tic to have a specific foreign bank which deals with cor- porate clients in gaming and Blockchain, but many banks perceive this sector as risky, although I am in discussions with a foreign bank on this matter," Bradamante noted. Malta working to improve crime detection and address shortcomings Parliamentary secretary Sil- vio Schembri said that from January 1 next year, the new gaming industry law would come into effect. This has consolidated a number of other laws, reducing bureau- cracy and making it easier for the operators to function, he emphasised. He reiterated that the Mal- ta Gaming Authority is also about to sign a historical agreement with a number of Italian authorities aimed at sharing information, even related to the intelligence as- pect, to increase our capabil- ity to detect criminal and il- legal activity. "In the previous days per- sons involved in a large-scale [money laundering] criminal activity, which was operating out of Italy, were caught by the police in an investigation which the Maltese and other countries' authorities collab- orated in," Schembri said. "This shows that the au- thorities in Malta are doing their job. If they weren't, we wouldn't have detected these illegal activities," he said. He added that the relevant laws had been changed to make them future proof, and that the regulator was endeav- ouring to improve the legisla- tory framework in areas where shortcomings are detected. mcosta@mediatoday.com.mt 'There is a skill gap with locals'