Tagged: malta financial services authority

December 5, 2024 @ 5:03 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

With the aim of attaining “high” compliance standards within the financial service industry, including the investment sector, the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) conducts a range of supervisory activities using a set of diversified tools, such as “on-site Inspections, off-site work and meetings.” As a… Read More

October 27, 2024 @ 4:40 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The MFSA is urging sector-wide alignment to banking risk as well as capital disclosure practices. The MFCA noted in a recent update that it is calling for enhanced consistency as well as more transparency among credit institutions. The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) has issued… Read More

September 8, 2024 @ 4:12 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

With the increasing reliance on digital processes, tools, and the economy itself, the financial services sector faces heightened exposure to operational risks, particularly Information and Communication Technology (ICT) risks. The latest volume of the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA)’s publication, “The Nature and Art of… Read More

July 25, 2024 @ 12:38 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) has released a “Dear CEO” letter outlining the results emanating from a thematic review focused on Money Laundering Reporting Officers (MLROs) operating within Company Service Providers (CSPs) set up as corporate entities. As highlighted in the latest rendition of… Read More

July 14, 2024 @ 5:35 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Due to the increasing reporting requirements of the EMIR REFIT, the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) has issued a survey to assess financial entities’ level of preparedness ahead of the changes coming into force, which “will see the number of reporting fields increasing significantly from… Read More

July 1, 2024 @ 9:46 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) released its Annual Report, highlighting the stability and resilience of the Maltese financial services industry in 2023. Malta’s financial services sector is reportedly “a major player in the country’s economic success.” Between 2022 and 2023, the financial services sector… Read More

June 15, 2024 @ 3:13 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Over 25% of the 474 investigations carried out by the MFSA in 2023, were related to persons or entities which were suspected of undertaking licensable activities without having obtained the necessary authorizations, or scams. These investigations include suspicious activity or dubious schemes which “appeared to… Read More

February 18, 2024 @ 8:48 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Following a recent collaborative “mystery shopping” exercise between the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) and the European Banking Authority (EBA), several credit institutions have “proactively taken steps to enhance consumer service levels based on the Authority’s recommendations.” The evaluation focused on personal loans and payment… Read More

December 27, 2023 @ 8:58 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) is launching a new framework for Notified Professional Investor Funds (NPIFs). The framework provides for “an additional fund structure in Malta that benefits from an appropriately streamlined onboarding process and complements other existing fund frameworks.” The MFSA is launching… Read More

June 1, 2021 @ 9:53 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

    Xcoins, a cryptocurrency exchange platform, announced on Monday it received its Class 3 Virtual Financial Asset (VFA) License issued by the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA). The company claims it was one of the first cryptocurrency exchanges to receive these permissions from MFSA…. Read More

December 18, 2020 @ 1:30 pm By JD Alois  |  

CoinDeal says it is now the first company to have obtained a Class 4 Virtual Financial Assets (VFA) Licence in Principle Approval from the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA). The exchange reports that it has just received a letter on 16 December 2020. CoinDeal explains… Read More

October 26, 2020 @ 8:46 am By JD Alois  |  

  VAIOT has become the first digital asset to be regulated by the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) falling under the Maltese Virtual Financial Assets Act (VFAA), according to a note from the company. VAIOT seeks to enable both businesses and consumers to utilize a… Read More

February 23, 2020 @ 5:48 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA), the nation’s financial regulator, released a statement on February 21, claiming that it never actually regulated Binance, the world’s largest crypto-asset exchange in terms of adjusted trading volume.  To quote the MFSA: Following a report in a section of… Read More

November 2, 2019 @ 11:29 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA), the financial regulator of Malta, has reportedly received 21 requests from digital asset exchanges that are interested in acquiring operational licenses under the island country’s Virtual Financial Assets (VFA) Act. As noted in a November 1 announcement on MFSA’s… Read More

March 11, 2019 @ 3:02 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) has enlisted CipherTrace Compliance Monitoring to better manage operational risks regarding digital assets. The MFSA is implementing the CipherTrace tool which is designed to continuously rate the risks of cryptocurrency businesses to protect consumers, investors, and business partners. The… Read More

April 14, 2018 @ 1:28 pm By JD Alois  |  

Malta, a Mediterranean country that wants be known as Blockchain Island, has published a “Financial Instrument Test” as it seeks to clarify questions regarding initial coin offerings (ICOs) and when a digital asset is a security and when it is not. The Malta Financial Services… Read More