Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1544723
6 COMMERCIAL maltatoday | SUNDAY • 3 MAY 2026 'When it comes to the financial services sector, strategic focus now matters more than volume' Bernice Buttigieg, Chief Strategy Officer at FinanceMalta Over the past few years, Malta's financial services sector has achieved a remarkable level of sophistication which has allowed a stronger focus on more strategic sectors and a refinement of the services Malta is best positioned to offer. After a period of intense scrutiny that included a brief spell on the Financial Ac- tion Task Force's grey list in 2022, Malta's financial services sector has entered a new phase of sophistication. "Over the past few years, the sector has matured a lot and today we are at a point where strategic focus matters more than volume" says Dr Bernice Buttigieg who has been FinanceMalta's Chief Strategy Officer since 2023. Having joined FinanceMalta in 2008, the past eighteen years have given Dr Butt- igieg a front-row seat to the evolution of Malta's financial services sector and in her opinion, the brief period of regula- tory scrutiny accelerated improvements across the board, from strengthened com- pliance frameworks to enhanced supervi- sory practices and legislative refinements which laid the groundwork for Malta's global repositioning. "More than a setback, Malta's grey list- ing was a catalyst that forced us to address gaps in transparency and governance to ultimately reinforce our credibility." FinanceMalta itself, a public-private ini- tiative promoting the country as an inter- national financial centre, has been instru- mental in raising Malta's profile abroad. The sector contributes 8.2% of Malta's to- tal real gross value added and a workforce 21.6% larger than in 2020. A key development was the establish- ment of the Malta Financial Services Advisory Council (MFSAC) in 2021, a public-private body designed to set and implement a long-term strategy for the sector. Since its launch three years ago, around two-thirds of the projects in its roadmap have been initiated or complet- ed, spanning banking, insurance, digital finance, funds, and pensions. Sector-specific working groups have re- duced fragmentation across the ecosys- tem, aligning regulatory policy, legislative reform, and industry practice. Initiatives have ranged from aircraft leasing legis- lation to trust regime enhancements, all carefully calibrated to international stand- ards. The results of this strategy are increas- ingly evident. Malta's annual FinanceMalta confer- ence, held last November, reflected an in- dustry more confident and outward-look- ing than in previous years. Discussions spanned fintech, ESG integration, artifi- cial intelligence, and private wealth struc- tures, demonstrating a level of maturity and self-awareness that Dr Buttigieg de- scribes as "not always present in the past." Malta's approach is now defined by niche specialisation rather than broad-based ex- pansion. Fintech remains a priority, build- ing on the country's early adoption of the Virtual Financial Assets Act. While initial legislation positioned Mal- ta as a pioneer in digital assets, the focus has shifted towards alignment with EU- wide frameworks such as the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation and the Digital Operational Resilience Act. Maintaining innovation while meeting higher expec- tations for governance and operational resilience is central to sustaining investor confidence. In funds and asset management, Mal- ta continues to leverage EU passporting rights, with developments such as AIFMD II introducing greater flexibility. Notably, alternative investment funds domiciled in Malta can now appoint de- positaries in other EU states where local services are limited, a practical solution for a small jurisdiction with a constrained domestic depositary market. Although this stops short of full passporting, it ma- terially improves operational viability. Private wealth and family office struc- tures have also become a key focus. Reg- ulatory refinements now support the es- tablishment of single family offices under proportionate supervision, complement- ed by fiscal incentives to attract senior talent. "The aim is not volume but the creation of a competitive ecosystem supported by legal, fiduciary, and wealth management infrastructure," notes Dr Buttigieg. Captive insurance and reinsurance are also becoming central to enterprise risk planning. Malta's cell company struc- tures, EU passporting, and English-speak- ing regulators attract mid-sized captives, while insurance-linked securities and al- ternative risk transfer offer high-potential niches combining insurance and fund reg- ulation. Underlying all these developments is a recognition that performance alone is in- sufficient. "Perception is critical. Past criticism pushed us to seek more transparency and better governance and today's collabora- tive framework established by MFSAC re- flects a shared commitment to long-term credibility. Our ambition is to be a so- phisticated and reliable partner in global finance." Malta has managed to attract emerging niches such as fund management, insur- ance, fintech, aircraft finance and family office services. MFSA figures show how from 2073 MFSA-licensed entities in 2020, the number increased by 16.4% to 2413 entities in 2025 and in terms of em- ployment, the sector grew by 21.6% be- tween 2020 and 2024. However, the sector, projected to con- tribute between €4.8 billion and €5.3 bil- lion to the country's GDP by 2035 is also facing the critical challenge in ensuring the right amount of skilled workforce needed to sustain this projected growth. Without a coordinated strategy to at- tract, train and retain top talent, Malta risks slowing the growth of this important industry," says Dr Buttigieg. The Malta Financial Services Advisory Council recently commissioned a talent mapping study to provide the first com- prehensive assessment of the sector's workforce. Currently being led by aca- demics within the University of Malta and financed by Identità, this research is examining recruitment trends, retention pressures, emerging skills gaps and the ef- fectiveness of key immigration pathways such as the Blue Card, Key Employee In- itiative, and Single Permit schemes. "Collectively, as a sector, we have achieved a lot. But human capital remains the sector's most critical resource. Policies and incentives can guide growth, but with- out skilled professionals, the sector cannot achieve its full potential," she concluded.