Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1176246
25 OPINION maltatoday | SUNDAY • 13 OCTOBER 2019 And we even can't argue, because we ourselves were the ones who bargained away that right, when we sold off what was once our own 'asset of national strategic importance'… to become someone else's does think about, probably all the time. And all indications to date have been that… yes, under certain circumstances it would no doubt consider winding up its Malta operations (just like any other major profit- oriented corporation would do in its place). These circumstances might include an economic slow- down (that may or may not be imminent, depending whom you ask); but there could be other factors also. It was only a few months ago, for instance, that a German MEP named Sven Giegold declared he would 'start a personal campaign' to con- vince HSBC to withdraw from Malta, owing to our presumed 'rule of law' issues. And oh my, what a coincidence. Fast- forward just a few months, and HSBC suddenly announces the closure of eight of its major branches, all over Malta… OK, OK, it probably really is just a coincidence… but that is beside the point, really. The really worrying thing is that our reliance on this one banking giant also makes us vulnerable to precisely the sort of blackmail employed by Giegold. 'Want to hurt Malta economically? Easy-peasy. Just strike out at HSBC; then sit back and watch, while the entire Maltese population pleads for mercy like a bunch of frightened rabbits…' And, what's worse, this vulnerability of ours – this Achilles' Heel, there for all the world to take as many pot-shots at as it likes – is a weakness that is entirely of our own making. This, to me, is the real im- plication of HSBC's ongoing downsizing operations. Simply put, we have lost our collective peace of mind regarding the stability of our country's entire banking sector. For regard- less whether HSBC chooses to stay or leave… we are still faced with the uncomfortable prospect that it could make that announcement any time it likes, and for (almost) any reason it chooses. And we even can't argue, because we ourselves were the ones who bargained away that right, when we sold off what was once our own 'asset of na- tional strategic importance'… to become someone else's. So the question I would be asking, at this stage, is: how on earth did we even get to such a point, where our own eco- nomic stability relies so utterly on decisions taken by outsid- ers… and over which we, as a country, have absolutely no control whatsoever? I don't know… but I'm sure glad as Hell that I'm not the one people might soon be turning to for an answer… Talk to us | 2131 2020 | bov.com REWARD YOURSELF AT THE POINT SHOPPING MALL BOV CARDS Earn points in the BOV Loyalty Rewards Programme every single me you use your BOV Visa Pla num, BOV Visa Gold or your BOV Skypass. Issued by Bank of Valle a p.l.c., 58, Triq San Żakkarija, Il-Belt Valle a VLT 1130. Bank of Valle a p.l.c. is a public limited company regulated by the MFSA and is licensed to carry out the business of banking in terms of the Banking Act (Cap. 371 of the Laws of Malta).