Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1504500
5 NEWS 27.7.2023 Bolt e-scooter riders' behaviour on the road to be evaluated every five rides MASTERCARD and FinanceMalta will collaborate on delivering a com- prehensive study that will include stra- tegic recommendations that will be shared with the Malta Financial Ser- vices Advisory Council with the aim of contributing towards Malta's Fintech Strategy. e in-depth study will encompass a range of recommendations and ini- tiatives that can be implemented over the coming years. To ensure a holistic view, the study will capture feedback from a wide array of the Fintech com- munity stakeholders. Mastercard, a global leader in finance and technology, is keen on enhancing its efforts in the development of Mal- ta's payment ecosystem. is increased commitment is aligned with Finance- Malta's shared goal of positioning the smallest EU jurisdiction as a leading regional Fintech Hub, fostering inno- vation, and driving economic develop- ment. e study aims to foster the growth and maturity of Malta's Fintech sector, ensuring it remains at the forefront of global trends and developments. rough the collaboration, the Maltese ecosystem will become an even more accommodative environment to Fin- techs. In tandem, public administrators, regulators and incumbent financial in- stitutions will also greatly benefit from the outcomes of this study, as it will create fertile environment for collab- orations, and enable the overall pay- ment ecosystem for long-term success. "Mastercard is looking forward to working closely with FinanceMalta to support the Malta Financial Services Advisory Council on this transform- ative initiative" Panagiotis Polydoros, the Country Manager for Greece, Cy- prus and Malta at Mastercard said. "rough our joint efforts, we aim to further empower Malta's Fintech com- munity and ensure that the country remains at the forefront of innovative financial technology. By identifying the necessary actions and leveraging Mastercard's international expertise, we can create an environment that en- ables the growth and success of Malta's Fintech ecosystem." FinanceMalta chairman, George Vella said that "the Maltese Fintech environ- ment has been growing substantially over the past few years. is makes Mastercard's commitment an impor- tant step towards establishing Malta as a Fintech Hub. We look forward to see- ing the fruits that their expertise will reap for Malta's Fintech environment." By fostering collaboration, facilitat- ing knowledge exchange, and encour- aging innovation, Mastercard believes its contribution through this initiative will be a determining factor to Malta's economic growth, while also enticing international investments and consol- idating the nation's stature as a prom- inent player in the regional Fintech industry. Mastercard and FinanceMalta collaborate to propel growth of Malta's Fintech ecosystem FROM PAGE 1 e multimodal mobility platform took a strong step in upgrading its customers' safe rid- ing experience by launching its in-house devel- oped rider scoring system. It evaluates a rider's behavior based on a wide set of inputs collected from Bolt's scooter fea- tures and sensors. e list of indicators includes tandem riding detection, frequent abrupt braking and skid- ding, collisions, and illegal parking. Each of those behaviors is marked in the system with points and the user's riding behaviour is evalu- ated after every five rides. Kristian Kobescak, Rentals Country Manager at Bolt Malta explained the complete process a rider undergoes if they are considered reckless. If a rider falls into a group of 2% of the most reckless customers in a given city, Bolt will im- pose measures as a part of a three-step policy. As a first measure, Bolt will share additional educational materials with reckless riders, since the company believes that reckless riding can be tackled initially by raising awareness on the hazards that riders expose themselves to. If the riders do not improve their behaviour over the next five rides, their scooter speed will be limited to 15 km/h for the next five rides. If the two measures do not bring any improve- ment, users will be suspended for one week with the option to appeal the decision to Bolt's customer service. is safety score system was tested in Belgium, Germany and Portugal and is now live in Malta. Illegal parking of e-scooters - as well as tandem riding, frequent abrupt braking and skidding, and collisions - will trigger a series of three measures that misbehaving riders will need to follow