Stability, resilience and efficiency are the hallmarks of a secure and trusted finance industry. Robust financial services are essential to the smooth running of our economy, the welfare of our society and to our well-being. For Malta, the sector is also a direct contributor to the economy, providing multiple sources of employment, revenue and foreign investment.

The regulation and supervision of financial services play a key role in ensuring this trust is maintained, as do the quality of compliance of regulated entities, laws guaranteeing fair access to the financial system and the duty of business and consumers to use these services responsibly.

As the institution responsible for overseeing this industry, the MFSA must work to ensure that financial institutions operate to high standards and guard against the risk of abuse, thereby protecting the end consumer and enhancing investor confidence.

It must do this as it adapts and charts its way through the dynamics that drive the industry forward: the challenges it faces, the changing risk scenario and the emerging opportunities that help it survive and prosper. This calls for sound strategies, effective policymaking, and efficient and agile regulation and supervision – all aims that the autho­rity’s newly launched Strategic Statement sets out to achieve.

We have identified 27 priorities, grouped under five strategic pillars. We want to deliver more proactive regulation while sustaining a resilient, internationally networked financial sector. As we seek to embrace innovation and embed sustainability requirements into our supervisory remit, both of which bring with them more challenging supervisory responsibilities as well as new financial and operational risks, good governance and compliance will remain high on our agenda.

We also plan to intensify our engagement with consumers, industry and professional bodies, and academic institutions to sustain the evolutionary process that helps the sector develop and grow.

We are set on engaging with the public more frequently as we intensify our outreach programmes to equip consumers with the right tools so they can make more informed financial decisions.

We recognise that meeting all these objectives requires ongoing investment in our capacity, our people and the digitalisation of processes. We will seek to make this investment and support our people to perform at their very best to achieve these goals.

Good governance and compliance will remain high on our agenda- Michelle Mizzi Buontempo

Each of these pillars is critical to us and to our stakeholders, which include other national and European supervisory agents, market participants, consumers, and the economy at large.

The MFSA’s Strategic Statement is a result of contributions from our people, as well as consultations with industry and consumer associations, and other regulatory bodies.

We appreciate the feedback we have received from across the spectrum of society and are committed to continue actively encour­aging and cultivating a healthy, open dialogue with our entire stakeholder-base.

Their involvement in our planning process ensures that our focus remains relevant, timely, and consistent with our statutory mandates of financial stability, market integrity, and consumer protection. We understand that the industry has expectations of us, and by publishing our Strategic Statement, we hold ourselves accountable to meet those expectations.

As we establish our plans for the coming years, the fulfilment of our statutory obligations remains at the forefront of our minds – and for this to be achieved, we commit ourselves to measure our progress against our objectives and be ready to continuously evolve. Challenges are unavoidable, but preparedness is an important tool for ensuring that we are well-equipped to take them on.

I am confident that with the unwavering dedication and cooperation of our stakeholders, we can secure a bright and resilient future for Malta’s financial services industry.

The MFSA Strategic Statement is available on the MFSA website.

Michelle Mizzi Buontempo is Acting CEO and Chief Officer Enforcement, MFSA.