Louis Farrugia, chairman of Farsons Group, has won the sixth edition of the EY Entrepreneur of the Year. He will now represent Malta in EY’s World Entrepreneur of the Year award, being held in Monaco in June, together with business leaders from more than 60 countries.
Yasmin de Giorgio, CEO of Shireburn Software Ltd and founder of Culture of Life Ltd, has taken home the prize of EY’s Rising Star. A serial entrepreneur having founded a number of businesses before the age of 30, Yasmin is growing her role in the tech industry while exploring the growing sector of wellness.
EY has been holding the Entrepreneur of the Year awards globally for over three decades. Now found in more than 60 countries, they include a global network of 50,000 entrepreneurs and are the global benchmark for capturing today’s and tomorrow’s entrepreneurial spirit.
The Maltese award is adjudicated by an independent panel made up of key figures from the business community.
This year’s winners are all about business acumen and experience
This year’s panel included Marisa Xuereb (president of the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise, and Industry); Paul Abela (president of the Malta Chamber of SME’s); Kenneth Farrugia (CEO BOV plc.); Simon Vaughan Johnson (HSBC CEO); Catherine Calleja (managing director, Atlas Health Insurance).
The Malta award promotes entrepreneurship across the Maltese islands and empowers entrepreneurs to grow their businesses both locally and globally.
Previous winners include Alfred Pisani from Corinthia Group in 2017, Angelo Xuereb from AX Holdings in 2018, David Darmanin from Hotjar in 2019, Nazzareno Vassallo from Vassallo Group in 2021 and Mark Bajada from Bajada Investments Ltd in 2022.
The previous awardees of the Rising Star award include David Vella from Altaro Software, Shane Hunter from AquaBioTech Group, Ben Remfrey from Praedium Consulting Malta Ltd, John Winfield of Dr Juice and Krystle Penza of MVintage.
Ronald Attard, EY Malta’s Country Managing Partner, said: “This year’s winners are all about business acumen and experience. Louis’s contribution to Malta’s business world is overwhelming and it is great to see him receive the recognition he deserves. Yasmin may be young but she has excelled in a number of sectors from catering to tech to wellness and that kind of flexibility is a testament to the future of the working world that we are now approaching. Finally, a big congratulations to all the 2023 finalists whose determination and perseverance has brought them so far! Good luck to Mr Farrugia and Ms De Giorgio in Monaco!”
Kevin Mallia, EY Malta consulting lead and EOY Programme lead, said: “I am proud to say that in its sixth edition, the EOY award has found another exceptional cohort of promising entrepreneurs. I commend this year’s judges in their difficult role of choosing the award winners in a competition that is becoming increasingly difficult every year as Malta’s entrepreneurial spirit continues to grow. We are sure that the 2023 winners will make Malta proud as they compete in EY’s World Entrepreneur of the Year next June.”
The awards are supported by the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry.