Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1223727
19.03.2020 6 OPINION THE Malta Business Bureau has called on the Maltese government to make full use of a relaxation of state aid rules by the European Union. The MBB made special mention of airlines – with Air Malta flights now having suffered an immediate setback – currently sustaining damages due to the Covid-19 outbreak, as being eligible for compensation even if they have received rescue aid in the last ten years. "In this case the 'one time last time' principle does not apply," MBB presi- dent Simon De Cesare said. The European Commission has an- nounced a temporary framework on state aid rules which is now being consulted with EU member states. Among others, these would allow member states to introduce measures such as schemes of direct grants or tax advantages of up to €500,000 to a company, subsidised state guarantees on bank loans and public and private loans with subsidised interest rates. The Malta Business Bureau wel- comed the European Commission initiative which acknowledges the state aid flexibilities required at this desperate time to save strategic com- panies such as airlines as well as thou- sands of small and medium enterpris- es facing unprecedented challenges to keep afloat. "Time is of the essence for these measures to be actioned immediate- ly. The economic slump has come upon companies so swiftly that many businesses cannot cope, particularly as there is no end to this crisis yet in sight," De Cesare said. "Our responsibility is to keep our customers and our employees safe, but also to safeguard their jobs and livelihoods. Companies on the front- line like tourism and tourism-related sectors, are unable to do so without the necessary support nationally and at EU level. Companies are already having to deal with the huge burden of no income coupled with wages of em- ployees who are unable able to work. "Liquidity and access to finance are also essential in order to stabilise op- erations and resist the economic pain in the medium- to long-term. For this, we urge EU member states, particu- larly the Maltese government to ac- tion these measures the earliest pos- sible and roll them out widely to all affected companies. Small measures will not have the stabilizing effect the country needs right now." Airlines must get state aid, lobby tells government as Covid-19 hits tourism hard MEDIRECT has announced that it has implemented the necessary contingen- cy measures to allow the bank to be able to continue operating on a busi- ness as usual basis via remote work- ing, in the case of a lockdown decided by the authorities or if it is negatively affected by the current Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. "Over the past days, the bank has taken the necessary steps and con- tingency measures so that by Mon- day, 16th March 2020, staff will have the capability to work remotely from their homes. This means that our cli- ents can seamlessly continue to ben- efit from our services both online and over the phone, and our staff will be there to assist them" said Arnaud Denis, Group Chief Executive Officer of MeDirect. At this stage, the bank is not imple- menting a mandatory work-from- home policy, but any staff members who ask to work from home are be- ing given the flexibility to do so. If the need arises, MeDirect is ready to im- plement procedures whereby all staff can operate remotely, with no adverse impact on clients. "I would like to warmly thank all of our colleagues at MeDirect, especially the IT staff, for the quick turnaround in being able to ensure all employ- ees are equipped with the necessary remote working capability," said Mr Denis. e advice from health experts is that avoiding non-essential contact is one way of preventing the spread of the virus, and thus the bank encour- ages clients to make greater use of its online services or to contact their fi- nancial adviser by phone should they need advice. MeDirect's Wealth Support team can be reached on (+356) 2557 4400 (Mon- day to Friday - 8:00am to 6:00pm, and Saturday - 9:00am to 1:00pm) or at customerser vice@medirect.com.mt, and remain available to assist clients with any queries. MeDirect reminds its clients that it has issued important guidelines for cli- ents to ensure they are well prepared to access their accounts and investments in the simplest way possible. e guidelines are available at: https ://w w w.me dire ct .com.mt/up- dates/news/news-articles/coronavi- rus-prepare-and-prevent-for-more- peace-of-mind. In the current uncertain economic environment, MeDirect pays particu- lar attention to protecting the bank with enhanced risk management and we continue monitoring the current pandemic in close collaboration with the authorities and take all necessary measures to safeguard the bank, its staff and its clients. MeDirect ensures continuity of banking services Unlicensed exchange THE Malta Financial Services Au- thority has become aware of an enti- ty operating by the name MarketsFX which has an internet presence at https://marketsfx.it/ and https://mar- ketsfx.com/. e entity claims to be a "financial services provider, offering a selection of more than 1,000 financial assets, such as currency pairs, stocks, com- modities, indices and to traders from all around the globe". e MFSA said that MarketsFX is not a Maltese-registered company nor is it licensed or otherwise authorised by the MFSA to provide the service of an exchange or other financial servic- es which are required to be licensed or otherwise authorised under Maltese law. Furthermore, information available to the MFSA, including the warn- ing issued by the Italian Regulator CONSOB dated 14 October 2019, suggests that MarketsFX is likely to be a scheme of dubious nature with a high risk of loss of money. e public should therefore refrain from under- taking any business or transactions with the above-mentioned entity.