Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1283588
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 30 AUGUST 2020 12 COMMERCIAL MFSA on track to implement MONEYVAL recommendations OVER the course of the past year, Malta's financial services watchdog has been hard at work implementing new measures and reforms in the fight against money laundering ahead of the Moneyval assessment later on this year, with the Authority's efforts having started several months earlier with the launch of its comprehensive AML/CFT strategy. MFSA's Chief Officer Super- vision, Christopher Buttigieg stressed the importance of this assessment for Malta's future, stating that "in order for Mal- ta's financial services sector to continue its sustainable growth and to remain a competitive and trusted jurisdiction, a pos- itive assessment is crucial". The MFSA has been working towards this end, with initia- tives such as the establishment of a dedicated Financial Crime Compliance unit in early 2019 to house a team of AML/CFT experts, including several in- ternationally-esteemed experts who have both complemented, as well as helped to shape local AML/CFT efforts. This investment was car- ried out with the express aim of focusing more attention on the Authority's role in com- batting money laundering and the funding of terrorism and increasing its effectiveness in identifying any instances of misconduct. As a direct result of these efforts, the MFSA was able to conduct 65 AML site visits between July 2019 and July 2020. This marks a sig- nificant increase when com- pared to the same period in 2018/2019, during which only 19 site visits were carried out. This number is only expected to increase in the coming years, with the Authority aiming to carry out 75 such inspections throughout 2020. Moreover, in accordance with the national efforts to meet the recommendations in the Mon- eyval report, the watchdog has also taken the step of including AML/CFT oversight within all the prudential visits that are being carried out. This year alone, these are expected to amount to over 250 visits. In fact, in upgrading their su- pervisory standards, AML/CFT risks have now been integrated within all the Authority's su- pervisory activities. Furthermore, the MFSA has also, for the first time, estab- lished a Register of Beneficial Owners of Trusts, to bring about greater scrutiny and transparency on this sector, and ensure that there is more oversight and accountability. This endeavour, which forms part of the Authority's over- all drive towards strengthen- ing good governance, has seen the number of trusts, that are obliged to submit details of beneficial ownership infor- mation, increase from 300 to more than 3,000. This initiative is supported by regular on-site visits that are conducted by the MFSA to ensure that the re- ported data is accurate. The Authority has also taken measures to introduce more comprehensive AML/CFT checks throughout the entirety of the supervisory process, with particular focus on its authori- sation procedures. These have now been reformed and made more rigorous in an effort to ensure that AML/CLT checks are more stringent, with more emphasis being given to the shareholding structure, gov- ernance framework, internal controls, and business models that are put forward. The measures implemented by the MFSA are being under- taken with a more long-term strategy in mind. In fact, the Authority's CEO, Joseph Cus- chieri, noted that while "the MFSA is hard at work to fulfil its requirements for the MON- EYVAL assessment later on this year, our long-term strat- egy remains that of increas- ing the MFSA's effectiveness in terms of enforcement and supervision with the ultimate aim being that of safeguarding Malta's reputation as a serious jurisdiction open to good busi- ness". The MFSA for the first time, established a Register of Beneficial Owners of Trusts, to bring about greater scrutiny and transparency on this sector, and ensure that there is more oversight and accountability