Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1387622
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 27 JUNE 2021 14 COMMERCIAL ARQ Group and Malta Bankers' Association to host conference on the FATF plenary decision AGAINST the backdrop of the recent FATF plenary decision to add Malta to the list of countries with strategic deficiencies, ARQ Group in collaboration with the Malta Bankers Association (MBA) will be organising the annual Anti Money Launder- ing (AML) and Financial Crime Conference titled "Fostering an enduring compliance culture in Malta. The FATF plenary deci- sion – understanding the impli- cations and charting the next steps". The event will be held online over two afternoons on 7 and 8 July. The webinar will bring together a prominent line- up of local and international speakers who will attempt to unravel the implications of this decision and discuss the potential impact on various sectors. Some of the foremost authoritative global figures in the AML/CFT sphere will be sharing their views with the au- dience, together with the CEOs of the major domestic banks, industry representatives and professional body representa- tives, together with senior Gov- ernment officials and supervi- sors as well as representatives from law-enforcement bodies. "It is a fact that the country has come a long way since the in- itial MONEYVAL assessment in 2019, with the National Co- ordinating Committee working together with other stakehold- ers to implement a host of re- forms to ensure Malta fulfils its AML and FCC obligations. Yet the FATF decision has shown us that there is still much that we have to do as a country. Thus we need to remain at the forefront of implementing fur- ther reforms which build on the significant work undertak- en in the past months," said Karol Gabarretta - Malta Bank- ers Association, Secretary Gen- eral. He added: "As in previous years, we are collaborating with ARQ Group to bring all the rel- evant stakeholders together in one event so as to achieve a mutual understanding of the FATF decision and its implica- tions, both for the public and private sector and determine the best way forward." ARQ Group Managing Part- ner Dr Manfred Galdes said: "As a country under increased scrutiny, our priority should be to regroup and make sure that every effort is made to convince the international bodies that the compliance culture being cultivated within the coun- try is an enduring one. The FATF has for the past decade focused its attention on effec- tiveness rather than technical compliance and so every effort henceforth both in the pub- lic and private sector should be aimed at ensuring that the country reaches the highest level of effectiveness when ap- plying the enforcement, super- visory and preventive measures catered for in our legislation". The panel discussions planned for the webinar will include internationally-renowned ex- perts who have been involved in the FATF/MONEYVAL evaluation process for several years, including Yehuda Shaf- fer and Dr Giuseppe Lombar- do. To register for the event visit: HYPERLINK "https://ar- qeducate.com/product/aml-fi- n a n c i a l - c r i m e - c o n f e r e n c e / " https://arqeducate.com/prod- uct/aml-financial-crime-con- ference/ Farsons convenes annual general meeting remotely SIMONDS Farsons Cisk plc's 74th annual general meeting was held remotely for the second time due to the restrictive meas- ures related to the COVID-19 environment. Farsons Group Chairman, Mr Louis A. Farru- gia stated at the AGM held on the 24th June 2021 that the re- sults achieved are commendable given the enormity of the chal- lenges that have been faced since March 2020. The past financial year will go down as one of the most challenging in the Group's history. The toll of the pandemic which has affected every corner of every continent, has also had severe implications on the trad- ing performance of the Group. The Farsons Group was able to manage the sizeable reduction in its trading activities without having to declare redundancies or take other very tough meas- ures due to the fact that it faced the crisis from a position of strength, having also just com- pleted ten years of growth in turnover and profits as well as implementing a very significant investments programme that modernized and transformed its facilities. Group turnover for the year ended 31 January 2021 fell from €103 million to €73 mil- lion, a decrease of 29.4% which was experienced across all sectors, with the higher drops being registered in the bever- age import operations and the franchised food establishments which were both impacted by enforced closures and the absence of tourists this past year. The Farsons Group also saw a decline in Group profit before tax for the year of €7.9 million, equivalent to a reduc- tion of 64% on that reported for the previous financial year. This year's profit before tax amounted to €4.4 million for the financial year under review. Given the evolving scenar- io, Mr Farrugia said that if the situation improves, the Board will be then better placed to consider favourably the decla- ration of an interim dividend at the time of the announcement of the Group's financial results in September 2021. Apart from approving the in- come statement and statement of financial position for the year ended 31 January 2021, and the reports of the Directors and the Auditors thereon, and the re-appointment of audi- tors PricewaterhouseCoopers, the meeting also approved the Remuneration Report for the year ended 31st January 2021. As approved in the previous Annual General Meeting held on 8th October 2020, the com- pany has not circulated printed copies of its annual accounts as these have been made available on its website www.farsons. com and the shareholders have been informed accordingly. The Board of Directors was also reconfirmed. From left, Mr Norman Aquilina – Group Chief Executive, Mr Louis A. Farrugia – Chairman, Ms Antoinette Caruana – Company Secretary, Mr Marcantonio Stagno d'Alcontres – Vice Chairman