Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1546133
The following has been edited for brevity and clarity. The full interview can be found on maltatoday. com.mt as well as our Facebook and Spotify pages. PHOTOS: JAMES BIANCHI / MALTA TODAY 5 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 9 AUGUST 2026 INTERVIEW I'm not exaggerating when I describe Bank of Valletta as a giant in the Maltese finan- cial services sector and the economy. Economists often say that if the US sneezes, the world catches a cold. Does the same analogy hold true for BOV and the Maltese economy? And what responsibility does this place on the bank? If one looks at the size of the bank's balance sheet, which today reaches €17.5 billion and views this within the context of Malta's economy, which stands at around €24 billion, we can already get a clear indication of the bank's relevance to the economy. And because we are a domestic bank, also the importance of the country's economy to the bank. There is a symbiotic fit… The bank's loan book tots up to €8.5 billion. This is an indication of the bank's importance in offering support to economic operators that ensure the economy continues performing at its current rhythm. The bank is important for Malta's economy, just as the economy is important for the bank. As regards the American impact on the world economy, it's beyond whether the US sneezes. Today, geopolitical tensions wherever they are—what is happening between Israel and Palestine, between Russia and Ukraine, between the US and Iran—impact the global economy. The impact is felt on the price of oil, the cost of logistics… If we look at statistics, it seems like Malta is isolated from this international turmoil. The economy continued to grow and is among the best in the EU, inflation is relatively low, we have no idea what unem- ployment is; why? It's a very interesting observation but I wouldn't say Malta is isolated. The impact is always felt and if you were to ask Maltese businesses about the impact on the price of containers, it is undoubtedly there. The higher risks increase insurance costs… the impacts are there but they have been, in some way, absorbed. But what I feel shields us the most is the diversification of the economy... We've heard a lot of individu- als and entities like the Cham- ber of Commerce arguing that economic success should not be measured only by growth but also by its resilience, its productivity and creation of value-added for the long term. From where you are seated at the helm of a big bank, what do you think is the biggest struc- tural challenge of the Maltese economy over the next decade and what role do you see banks like BOV play in addressing this challenge rather than sim- ply financing it? The various observations made by several, including the Chamber of Commerce, are what I call the pains of growth… growth does not always come in a gradual manner. If we were to look at the tourist projections during COVID, we were estimating to reach the four-million mark in 2030. We experienced an acceleration that will see us reach 4.5 million tourists by the end of this year… […] The justified grumbling that is going on requires us to address the pains of growth in a more accelerated manner. There is no magic button, which will suddenly reduce traffic… What you are calling the pains of growth, for a Swieqi resident would translate into their car's wing mirror being vandalised by unruly tourists, students throwing bottles from their balconies onto the street. Eco- nomic growth is nice, people having more money in their pocket is fine, but being able to have a good night's rest in your home; everyone wants that. There is no doubt about that. And there is no price in terms of economic growth that one can pay for that disturbance. Economic growth must not come at the expense of society's wellness. But these impacts can be managed. I have no doubt that the authorities are doing all they can to address these in the best way possible. But we must also compare our economic growth, jobs, society's wellness with those of other European countries. In business fora we ask ourselves; do we want to be discussing an unemployment problem and lack of economic growth, or the pains of economic growth and how these should be managed in a more agile way? […] I don't think the solution is short term and it requires a gradual shift. The biggest challenge is ensuring sustainable growth— pretty much like we've been doing at BOV, growing steadily and gradually. The transition and the ambition of politicians, businesspeople and ordinary citizens is for quality growth, which is not measured only by [headline] numbers but through productivity and this requires the collaboration of several economic actors that are selfless… The banking sector was instru- mental over the past decades to finance Malta's economic success… we've had loans that have gone to finance the con- struction sector, home loans and to a lesser extent person- al lending but in Vision 2050 government is aiming for an economy based on innovation, quality of life and productiv- ity. In this transformation, what role will banks play? Banks play an important role in sustainable development but banks are not the only entities that can influence sustainability. There are other economic actors that have important roles to play… You have a very important lever though. When a business- man comes up to you seeking finance for a new shopping mall, you can easily impose limits on lending for such a project while being more generous if the project is of a different nature. This is a strong lever. There is no doubt about that and we have implemented several initiatives. If we look at the green transition, today, the bank has several lending products that incentivise people to invest in green capex... we have a wide range of financing solutions for green investments that carry an interest rate of 2.8%, which is more advantageous than brown lending where the rate is 3.8%. We also have green home loans… we have provided a varied list of lending solutions not only for consumers but also for agents—SMEs and big corporates—that are selling green products to clients. In commercial lending we have gone one step further. For those investing in LEED and BREEAM certified buildings, the interest rate is cut immediately by one per cent when that certification is issued. But even for those who do not aspire for the highest level of sustainability certification, we've introduced a graduated pricing model based on green investments… The solutions exist but alone they will not suffice to attract enough operators to move towards sustainable development… Banks are an important actor but there are other actors at a policy and regulatory level, that can help sustain this transition. The number of branches BOV has totals as much as all the branches of all other domestic banks put together. At a time when your biggest rival in the market has reduced its branch- es and where more people are using mobile and online servic- es, BOV has adopted a strategy to remain present in the com- munity. Can you explain this philosophy? We have a very important role in the economy and today we service around 360,000 clients—around 20,000 business clients and 340,0000 ordinary clients. Clients come from every strata of society and are at different stages of their lifecycle… the bank took a strategic decision to create a balance between clients, who want a purely digital service— we are investing in a new mobile app with greater functions that will continue closing the gap between services offered over the counter and those available online—and those who want to be serviced in a branch. We closed some branches… but at the same time, we also extended the opening hours until 6pm in 14 of the 28 branches. We also consolidated our business centres into a one-stop shop business hub at Quad Towers… In digital terms, your biggest rivals are probably online banks like Revolut, which cli- ents find very easy to use. There is this tussle between these new banks—some describe them as 'fintechs' but I like to call them 'techfins' because they are primarily technology companies that saw a gap in the financial services sector and moved in to fill the void— and the 'fintechs', which are financial organisations like BOV that are onboarding this technology to offer more solutions to clients… But why are banks not as agile as these neo banks? The biggest challenge for established banks—BOV will soon be 53 years old—is that the technological architecture has been there for years and although it evolved, we did not start from scratch... it takes time to ensure the new structure can be amalgamated with the existing structure, while continuing with your normal banking activity. It is a challenge… When we start talking about technology it raises concerns over hacking and fraud. This is a phenomenon most people might not think about until they are bitten... This is an existential threat. Fraud is becoming ever more sophisticated.. Technology has brought about immense improvement in productivity but it also created an opportunity for abuse. The criminals today are not those who try and rob a bank branch but are sophisticated graduates, who might not even live in Malta. Artificial intelligence is leading to greater sophistication as well… How big a headache is this for you? It is a big headache not only for us as at BOV but all banks. We are taking various initiatives to minimise risk—our new mobile app will require facial recognition to process a payment. But if you give your card pin number to someone else, it is useless that the ATM asks you for a pin… The first line of defence is the client and that is where the banks together with the authorities should emphasise more in terms of alerting people about scams. Education remains the best form of defence…