Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/795987
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 8 MARCH 2017 11 Business Today www.creditinfo.com.mt info@creditinfo.com.mt Tel: 2131 2344 Your Local Partner for Credit Risk Management Solutions Supporting you all the way MIA registers 25% traffi c increase, secures ASQ award Malta International Airport wel- comed 296,250 passengers in February, translating into a 25.2% increase in traffi c over the same period in 2016, in spite of the fact that this year the month was a day shorter. This makes February the fourth, consecutive winter month to register double-digit growth, in line with the airport's strategy to attract more traffic in the shoulder months. On the busiest day in February, which coincided with Carnival weekend, the airport team was kept busy with a total of 13,679 passengers passing through the terminal. Growth in passenger numbers was experienced in parallel with an upturn of 22.3% in aircraft movements and an increase of 29.4% in seat capacity. Standing at 76.8%, seat load factor (SLF), however, registered a decrease of 2.6 percentage points over last year. Malta International Airport's top markets remained largely unchanged from January, with the United Kingdom topping the list followed by Italy, Germany, Belgium, and France. More than half of the 59,602 additional passengers welcomed last month travelled from Italy, Germany and Belgium, with enhanced connectivity to these markets contributing to their notable growth. Outside of the top five markets, Spain and Poland were important contributors to February's total traffic, accounting for 12,435 passengers and 8,253 passengers, respectively. Both of these markets have been experiencing steady growth, following stepped-up efforts to redevelop the Spanish market and enhance connectivity to Eastern Europe. Malta International Airport also obtained a prestigious third place from among 84 European peers in Airports Council International's globally acclaimed Airport Service Quality Awards 2016. Airports Council International (ACI) announced the winners of its ASQ Awards, following the rating of 284 airports worldwide by passengers travelling through them during the course of 2016. MIA obtained its highest score to date in this survey, which measures passengers' overall satisfaction with their airport experience, including staff efficiency and courtesy, ease of way finding and airport facilities. This landed the airport in a prestigious third place from among 84 European peers welcoming over two million passengers annually. Sharing this spot with Malta International Airport are Dublin (28m pax/year), Porto (7m pax/year) and Zurich (27m pax/year) airports. "The progress we registered in our overall score indicates that in our pursuit of service excellence we are better meeting our guests' expectations at the various points of their journey through our airport. I would like to thank our airport team and all our partners for working together towards the same vision of offering an airport experience that seeks to delight its visitors," said Malta International Airport CEO Alan Borg. Oulala is fi rst licensed B2B fantasy sports provider Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) platform provider Oulala.com has been handed the fi rst offi cial controlled B2B skill games licence from the Malta Gam- ing Authority (MGA). The B2B-focused company has successfully reached its goal that was set four years ago – to be regulated separately from other iGaming activities. In order to operate legally in the UK market, the Malta-based firm had to acquire a remote gaming licence simply because of the lack of proper regulation. Initially, national regulators in Europe showed little interest in diving into the Daily Fantasy Sports world. "The authorities in Malta were the first in foretelling the impact of DFS's potential in Europe, and the MGA was in fact the first regulator to acknowledge our needs," explained Benjamin Carlotti, one of the co- founders and managing director at the company that offers an award- winning fantasy football platform for API integration as well as a complete turnkey solution. "We are incredibly proud to be participating in the development of a licensing framework that regulates skill-based games, fantasy sports included. This was a highly significant step in the right direction, and our hope is that other European regulators will soon follow suit." The MGA spent more than two years working on a new licence category for "controlled skill games," which specifically regulates DFS and defines it as a game of skill, i.e. not gambling. "The Malta Gaming Authority is pleased to be issuing a B2B licence for fantasy sports to Oulala Games Ltd under the new skill games regulations," commented MGA's executive chairman, Joseph Cuschieri. "Malta's regulatory framework ensures a high standard of player protection and game fairness whilst allowing operators space for growth and innovation. It is for this reason that operators such as Oulala have chosen Malta as their primary place of establishment." A controlled skill game licence, which can be used for either B2C and/or B2B purposes, is valid for five years, and is subject to a number of requirements, including segregation of operational and players' funds. Carlotti sees an exciting time ahead for Oulala and the sector in general as some sports betting companies have already expanded their online offer with a range of fantasy sports games or have plans to do so, while others are keeping a close eye on the fantasy sports scene; "the millennial generation is expecting social skill games, so the iGaming sector must realise that adding DFS games to their list of products will only be beneficial for them in the long run." BOV confi rms ATMs operating normally after fraudsters' arrest Bank of Valletta confirmed that some of its ATMs were affected by a spate of fraud at- tacks which took place at the weekend. On Monday, two Romanian men were arraigned in court and charged with making fraudulent ATM withdrawals amounting to nearly €10,000 by tampering with the cash machines and stealing clients' bank details. They have been remanded in custody after a court denied their request for bail. In a statement, BOV said that all its ATMs were operating normally and that the service throughout its branch network and ATMs was not affected.