Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1347847
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 7 MARCH 2021 14 COMMERCIAL MFSA gearing up to face challenges brought about by COVID-19 PAUL COCKS WITH Malta well into its na- tional vaccination rollout, the MFSA is carefully positioning itself to continue to meet the needs of a sector that, like so many others, is still feeling the impact of a virus that has irrev- ocably altered society's way of life. The impact of the pandem- ic is in fact one of the MF- SA's Supervisory priorities for 2021 and throughout the year the Authority will continue monitoring its impact on the financial services sector. In particular, it will focus on the post-COVID viability of reg- ulated entities' business mod- els including their capacity to cope with the operational consequences and the impact on consumers of financial ser- vices. "The MFSA has taken the current situation very seri- ously and intends to continue doing so in the foreseeable future. Whilst the financial services sector in Malta has shown its resiliency in these times, COVID-19 has raised a number of concerns for li- censed entities. We remain positive and will continue the implementation of our strate- gic plan with a focus on stabil- ity and sustained growth for the long-term benefit of the sector," said Dr Christopher P. Buttigieg, CEO ad interim and Chief Officer Supervision at the MFSA. Crucially, the Authority is making extensive use of the technological framework that it has been investing in over the past few years, as it shift- ed a portion of its supervisory work online. The MFSA has thus been able to continue to fulfil its remit while safeguard- ing the health and security of all its employees and stake- holders. This process has included a broader adoption of question- naires, pre-visit requests for documentation, and the use of videoconferencing to conduct interviews with officials of au- thorised entities. Firms have been kept in- formed of all the latest de- velopments at both local and international levels, while guidance on how to best main- tain standards in the midst of the turbulence caused by the pandemic was provided to all stakeholders. The MFSA also provided clear guidelines on its expec- tations of entities' conduct during this period, so as to pre-empt any potential misun- derstandings. The financial services watch- dog prides itself on ensuring high standards across the field at all times. In view of current circumstances, the Authority has sought to apply regulatory relief, in line with the appli- cable regulatory frameworks. This should come as no sur- prise. Yes, the MFSA's core role is to regulate the financial services sector, but it is also dedicated to fostering the in- dustry's growth and support- ing its development, which requires the authority to take crucial judgement calls when faced with international crises such as the COVID-19 pan- demic. Such measures were only implemented after rigorous screening by the MFSA so as to prevent anyone trying to take unfair advantage of the situation to the detriment of firms who genuinely required the Authority's assistance. Today, the MFSA remains committed to being pro-ac- tive about tackling the fall- out caused by the pandemic, pre-empting and resolving the issues raised by its impact be- fore they are allowed to cause any significant damage. The impact of COVID-19 remains at the top of the MFSA's su- pervisory priorities for the remainder of the year.. Other MFSA priorities for the year include corporate governance and culture, financial crime compliance, ICT risk and cy- bersecurity, fintech and inno- vation.