Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1211430
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 16 FEBRUARY 2020 21 COMMERCIAL MELITA Limited has launched a charitable foundation with in- itial funding of €500,000. The Melita Foundation will be in- vesting these funds into a range of projects focused primarily on the development of digital skills and creativity among young peo- ple in Malta, and the conserva- tion of Malta's heritage and en- vironment. The new foundation will be headed by an independent chairperson whose appoint- ment will be announced short- ly and who will be assisted by a board appointed by Melita Limited. The creation of the Melita Foundation was made possi- ble by an initial donation of €500,000 from Apax Partners, Melita's shareholders until May 2019. Thomas de Villeneuve, Part- ner at Apax, explained, "When Harald proposed us to become a founding partner of the Mel- ita Foundation, we were imme- diately very enthusiastic about it. As a shareholder we always supported Melita's strategy to heavily invest to improve the telecom service provided to the Maltese community and to act as a responsible company. Initiating the Melita Founda- tion is a fantastic way for Apax Partners to continue to act as an engaged investor conscious of its responsibility towards the whole community. Apax Partners will, of course, continue to follow the Melita Foundation's future develop- ment". The Melita Foundation will begin operating following the appointment of the chairper- son, a role for which a public call has already been made. All of the Foundation's ex- penses will be funded entire- ly by Melita Limited meaning that 100 per cent of the funds available to the Foundation can be used to support projects. Details on how to apply for support will be published shortly on www.melitafounda- tion.org. Melita launches charitable foundation with funding of €500,000 HSBC Bank Malta business cus- tomers and the broader business community can now use an on- line Virtual Assistant to have many of their enquiries dealt with more efficiently. Available at www.business. hsbc.com.mt, the new Virtu- al Assistant provides intuitive online support to help business owners and managers access relevant information and make the most of the bank's online services. The introduction of the Virtual Assistant will not only help users to access the information they need more quickly and accurately, it will also allow HSBC's Business Contact Centre agents more time to handle more complex requests, further improving customer experience. Joyce Grech, Head of Com- mercial Banking at HSBC Mal- ta, said: "HSBC is focussed on delivering an unrivalled cus- tomer experience and is invest- ing in the latest technology to deliver on this ambition. The new Virtual Assistant will an- swer questions ranging from basic questions such as 'how to register for telephone bank- ing' to more complex ones such as how to open a business ac- count. Over time, the Virtual Assistant will also learn from the questions being asked by customers and become more intelligent, further improving the service." The new Virtual Assistant is HSBC's latest investment in digital technologies as the bank continues to increase the range of services available to custom- ers 24/7 in order to help them better manage their banking needs. HSBC Bank Malta launches Virtual Assistant for business customers VASSALLO Group CEO Pio Vassallo presented €8,000 col- lected through the group's an- nual dress down day to Rose Bugeja, the treasurer of Puttinu Cares. The presentation took place at the Rainbow ward in the On- cology division of Mater Dei Hospital. Director of HR & Communi- cations Charlo Bonnici was al- so present along with HR rep- resentatives from companies within the group. Through this initiative all employees were invited to do- nate hours or days of leave to help raise money for a good cause. The traditional head of- fice Hotdog day was organised where employees pitched in to handle all the necessary prepa- rations to make the event a successful one among other ac- tivities which were held across the group. As part of its corporate social responsibility Vassallo Group takes pride in organising such events to help out the commu- nity as much as possible. For more information about Vas- sallo Group visit www.vassal- logroupmalta.com. Vassallo Group employees dress down for Puttinu Cares Director of HR & Communications Charlo Bonnici was also present along with HR representatives from companies within the group