The Australian Financial Review website has published more revelations on the Panama Papers, saying today that a Malta advisory firm told Panama law firm Mossack Fonseca last October that two senior figures in the Maltese government (Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri) would use Panama companies to hold shares in recycling and remote gaming companies.

It said fresh records show that Mossack Fonseca approached six more banks about opening an account for Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi and the Prime Minister's chief of staff Keith Schembri’s companies, which were to hold investments that they said were "commercially sensitive". (To date only efforts to open accounts in Panama and Dubai were known)

Mr Schembri on Sunday lashed out at  "absolutely baseless" reports and said his Panama company, Tillgate Inc was "intended solely for estate planning".

Dr Mizzi said in a public statement last week that his New Zealand trust was set up for family reasons, and that he had told the prime minister of his intention to have a bank account to receive rent payments on his London property.

But, the Australian Financial Review says, the Fonseca documents show a more diverse investment strategy.

In May 2015, Nexia BT, the Malta accounting firm which acted for Mr Schembri and Dr Mizzi, ordered Mossack Fonseca's New Zealand office to set up two foreign trusts which would hold Panama companies: Mr Schembri's Tillgate and Mr Mizzi's Hearnville Inc.

We are in the process of opening a bank account in Dubai for two of our Panama companies

The trusts were still being finalised on August 8 when Nexia partner Karl Cini emailed Mossack Fonseca' Panama office: "We are in the process of opening a bank account in Dubai for two of our Panama companies."

The companies were Tillgate and Hearnville.

"The bank is asking us for the following documents which need to be attested from the UAE Embassy of Panama. They will then attest them further in Dubai."

Mossack Fonseca appears to have missed an August 28 deadline to provide the documents after probity concerns raised by Mossack's New Zealand office, on learning of the plan for a Dubai bank account.

Mossack NZ insisted on further due diligence details because Mizzi and Schembri were Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs).

Nextia wrote a letter of reference to Mossack for Schembri and Mizzi: "Both KS and KM will be involved as shareholders in a structure that is totally not related to their areas of work.

"The underlying entities of the Trusts will hence act as a vehicle of extracting the profits from this venture, since from commercially sensitive perspective they cannot appear as direct shareholders, either personally or via holding entities."

On September 10, Mossack Fonseca emailed Mr Cini that FPB Bank in Panama had refused to open an account for the two Panama compamies because the ultimate owners were PEPs.

On September 11, Daniel Leon from Mossack Fosneca in Panama emailed Mr Cini: "Following our telephone conversation of this morning, I have phoned two banks in the Caribbean which I used to work with, and they have no restrictions in opening accounts for PEPs."

The two banks were Bank of Saint Lucia International (BOSIL) and Winterbotham Trust in the Bahamas.

By September 15, Mossack Fonseca had found another three banks that would take PEP customers: the Miami branch of Brazil's Itaú Bank; (Miami): Brickell Bank, also in Miami; and BSI Bank in Panama. They also talked to Cidel Financial Group.

But they all required a $US1 million opening deposit.

The account will be the operating accounts of the Panama companies. Estimated deposits over one year to be around €350k

The website reports that on September 17 Mr Cini wrote: "The account will be the operating accounts of the Panama companies. Estimated deposits over one year to be around €350k.

Mossack Fonseca pressed for further details on where the funds in the account would come from. On October 17, Mr Cini reported he had finally obtained clarification on the intended operations of the Panama companies.

"In essence the Panama companies will be used as holding companies for operations that will be conducted in the sectors of: Recycling, Remote gaming."

"These underlying entities will be set up in other jurisdictions and the Panama companies will have a part stake in these entities.

"Recycling business will be undertaking in India, Dubai and other Gulf countries. "I wish to bring to your attention that the UBO [Ultimate Beneficial Owner] was already involved in such activities before his political appointment.

"Funds for these operations will come from existing profits generated from the UBO's business, to which I already referred to in my earlier explanations."

In the same October 17 email, Mr Cini wrote a draft letter of comfort on the source of Mr Schembri's funds.

"We can confirm that we have been acting as auditors of Mr Schembri's group of companies for 20 years acting also as his personal tax advisor.

"We are confident that that the funds generated by Mr Schembri's business and reflected in all tax declarations over the years are more than sufficient to substantiate the investment that is being purported to be made in the various activities indicated in our correspondence."

Spoke to client. They want to check re BSI in Panama. They are asking re the USD1m deposit. Is this for initial deposit only? Is there a minimum they need to keep as running/average balance?

On November 26, two days before the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Malta began, Mr Cini emailed Mossack Fonseca: "Spoke to client. They want to check re BSI in Panama. They are asking re the USD1m deposit. Is this for initial deposit only? Is there a minimum they need to keep as running/average balance?"

In an internal Mossack Fonseca email on November 27, Daniel Leon reported: "I called BSI Panama and the initial deposit can be $100K."

The customer needed to put $1 million into the account through the year, or even just $800,000. But if it was significantly below this level, the bank would close the account, the website says.

"Go ahead to start the opening of the accounts for those 2 panama companies," Mr Cini emailed on December 2. An internal Mossack Fonseca email on December 3 shows the firm was beginning the steps to open the account.

No further emails about the banking application could be found in the ICIG documents, which cut off around mid-December.

Mr Schembri and Dr Mizzi have said no account was ever opened.

The last email was from Mossack Fonseca to Cini on December 11. It was "just a friendly reminder" about some outstanding bills. 

Read the AFR report here.