Jatco Insurance to open UK branch
The Malta Financial Services Authority along with the Financial Conduct Authority of the UK have approved Jatco Insurance Brokers’ application to open a branch of the company in the United Kingdom.
The branch will be located at 34-36, Lime Street, London just opposite the Lloyd’s of London Building. The branch manager is Neville Hunt, who is a long standing member of the insurance industry in London. The branch was established to cater for the company’s UK client base and for EU clients especially in order to gain access to Lloyd’s of London after Brexit.
John Tortell, managing director of Jatco stated: “This is another exciting development for our company whereby we will have access to the London and international markets as required by our clients and by the ever-expanding specialist product lines required both in Malta and in the EU”.
Mr Hunt commented: “Jatco will be a strong addition to the London insurance market with its specialist structure and the solutions that it can provide. I am thrilled to be a part of this adventure and we look forward to working with our stakeholders to generate new and innovative opportunities.”
Mazars report on COVID-19
Mazars, the international audit and advisory firm, has published the results of a survey of private equity firms and investors and their response strategies to the COVID-19 crisis.
Overall, survey respondents expect a drop in revenues for portfolio companies over the next 12 months; unsurprisingly, there has been a clear decline in levels of activity as a result of the situation. In the meantime, while the majority of investors are open to new investments, there seems to be a smaller pool of available opportunities to choose from, and this will make completing deals more challenging.
On the other hand, survey responses indicate a general sense of optimism that there will be an appetite to invest and pursue new opportunities, with firms confirming that they are “open for business” as much as ever. However, there was also consensus in that things will not be back to normal until 2021.
Mazars Malta managing partner Anthony Attard said: “Despite potentially significant challenges, there is a level of optimism and resilience within the private equity community, and our experience tells us that quality transactions will still be delivered.”
The full report can be accessed through the following link: www.mazars.com.mt/Covid-19.
New managing directors for McDonald’s licencee in Romania and Malta
Premier Capital plc, the Maltese-owned developmental licencee for McDonald’s in six European markets, has named new managing directors for its operations in Romania and Malta.
Paul Dragan, currently managing director for Malta, will relocate to Bucharest to assume leadership of the Romanian market where the company operates 85 restaurants nationwide. He succeeds Daniel Boaje who is leaving the company after a successful 23-year career with McDonald’s in Romania. Peter Hili, currently serving as business consultant for the Malta market, has been promoted to managing director.
Mr Dragan, who moved to Malta in 2018 to lead the nine-restaurant network on the islands, was previously director of operations in Romania since 2011.
Mr Hili spent some time on the staff of the Embassy of Malta in Washington DC and then relocated to Canada for a placement with McDonald’s in Ottawa. He was appointed restaurant manager at McDonald’s Bay Street in Malta the following year.