Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/989894
21 COMMERCIAL maltatoday | SUNDAY • 3 JUNE 2018 THE month of May was an active month for BDO Malta as it saw the firm participate in two high profile confer- ences on a local and interna- tional front. FinanceMalta's 11th An- nual Conference was or- ganised between the 17 and 18 of May at the Hilton, St Julian's. Entitled "Finance Without Frontiers", the con- ference featured a number of local and international financial services experts who addressed delegates on contemporary topics affect- ing the financial services in- dustry including sessions on business start-ups, GDPR, cyber security, MiFiD II and MiFiR. The conference also dealt with crypto currency and blockchain technology, an area of key interest for BDO Malta and its recently set up Blockchain and Fintech Ad- visory team as a response to the strong market demands in this space. As one of the gold sponsors of the conference the BDO Malta team was present at the networking events as well as the BDO Malta stand dur- ing the one-day conference. BDO Malta was also active- ly engaged in Ukraine at the 8th INTAX Ukraine Confer- ence which was held on the 21 and 22 May. The event is regarded as the largest and most professional platform for communications between top managers of companies working in global markets and professionals servic- ing international deals and operations. Delegates from more than 20 countries were present to discuss the latest matters in corporate finance, individual and cor- porate structuring, local and international taxation, in- vestments, and trans border trading. BDO Malta sponsored and delivered a presentation on the Individual Investor Pro- gramme and Malta's attrac- tive tax framework. Mark Attard, Chief Execu- tive Officer at BDO Malta, stated "BDO Malta will con- tinue to support high profile and high value events similar to the FinanceMalta and IN- TAX Ukraine conferences. These conferences provide a prominent platform for the firm to foster strong re- lationships with partners of repute so that we can offer them real value via our spe- cialised services and field ex- pertise." Youth Action: Transforming trash and inspiring creativity THE Don't Waste Waste campaign, under the auspices of the Ministry for the Environment, Sustainable Devel- opment and Climate Change, contin- ues to create awareness for the need to reduce waste going to landfill. A couple of months ago, the campaign launched a fashion competition in- viting students to upcycle trash into fashion items which were showcased during a fashion show last weekend. Students were given the opportu- nity to do their bit in reducing waste by giving a second life to unwanted items. The challenge was to reuse objects which are not recyclable, and which would otherwise end up in a landfill. In a nutshell, participants had to stay away from recyclable items, as they would receive penalties for including them in their fashion creations. Recy- clable items such as paper and metal are considered resources rather than waste and reusing them can mean con- taminating them, making them useless to recycle. Students still had plenty to choose from as textiles, rubber, foam and even wood-based objects were all accepted. Broken ceramics, stationery, CDs, snack packets and other creative items were also permitted. Six teams from five different schools participated, among them Sir M.A Re- falo Sixth Form, St Benedict College, two teams from MCAST Gozo Cam- pus, MCAST Institute for Creative Arts and Verdala International School; com- peting in seven categories including the best outfit, best bag, best shoes, best ac- cessories, best headgear and best jacket awards, as well as an overall award for the best collection, with a fantastic grand prize of €1000 donated by Dizz. Group. The evening was compered by Chucky Bartolo , while the panel of six judges included senior representatives from the Malta Chamber of Fashion, the Dizz Group stylist, the Ministry for the Environment and others with a waste management background. After the models had showcased all their cre- ations, the judges announced the Jun- ior Fashionista team from St Benedict's College Secondary School in Kirkop overall winners, taking home the grand prize along with leading in all the other awards except one. The Best Accessory was won by Hair Divas, one of the teams from the Gozo branch of MCAST. See more photos from the event on the Facebook page: 'Don't Waste Waste' and the website www.dontwastewaste.gov.mt BDO Malta sponsors FinanceMalta's 11th Annual Conference and INTAX Ukraine Lions Club celebrates its 24th Charter Anniversary LIONS Club Mdina recently celebrated its 24th charter anniversary with a gala din- ner at Capua Palace, Sliema. Short speeches were de- livered by Provisional Zone chairperson Mary Ann Ab- ela and by Lion President Judith Debono. Lion Tania Fenech was Master of Cer- emonies. It was an enjoyable even- ing for both members and friends. Sam Spiridonov and Mark Attard at the BDO Malta stand at INTAX Ukraine