General Articles archives
Published on the Malta Independent, issue 06 February 2011
It was a cold wintry day when I stepped out of Moorgate tube station in the heart of London’s financial district to attend a conference on captives.The conference was organised by Pageant Media in collaboration with a number of leading City firms that also included a sponsorship from Finance Malta. Called Captive Live UK, it was a full two-day event held in a converted brewery that hosted over 150 delegates from the various sectors of the insurance market. Read Article..
Published on the Malta Independent, issue 30 January 2011
At the request of the European Commission, Malta – along with other EU member states – is in the process of preparing a 10-year national reform programme (NRP) to plan ahead with a view to improving economic conditions. Among other things, the programme is particularly intended to improve the labour market.
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Published on the Malta Independent, issue 16 January 2011
Malta is regarded as one of the leading international hubs that regulate remote gaming effectively and responsibly. In fact, the island has become a benchmark of how i-Gaming should be regulated. As a reflection of its professional approach to remote gaming regulation, the country has become the jurisdiction of choice for the industry; a jurisdiction which believes that all stakeholders have a role to play, both in maintaining it as well as developing it further in the years to come.
Published on the Malta Independant, 9th January 2011
We are now in the 11th year of a young millennium and our destiny beckons. By now, we will all have forgotten our New Year’s resolutions and are resigned to the fact that we can only improve our lot and achieve our objectives by tightening our belts, and not by drawing up wish-lists. Read Article..
Published on the Malta Independant, issue 2nd Jan 2011
Many have followed with trepidationthe latest shock waves that have battered the euro currency. There have been well wishers who wrote in favour of buttressing the single currency, while on the other hand a growing family of sceptics count the days for the death knell that will lead to its funeral.
Published on the Malta Independant, issue 19th December 2010
It is in the news again. Pensions have stolen the Christmas limelight, the social partners are up in arms and are discussing the latest recommendation for a mandatory second pillar. A study group is proposing that a second pension requirement should be introduced for those who are 45 and under. Read Article..
Published on the Malta Today, issue 15th December 2010
Finally it is upon us. Nearly all the investors are smarting up for the lush parties to kill the terrible times we have faced of late. This is when all the brokers, hedge fund managers and bankers start budgeting (like our parliamentarians) on how best to spend their annual bonuses and increased honoraria.
Published on the Malta Today, issue 8th December 2010 The first signs of the economic and financial crisis appeared at the beginning of the second quarter of 2008.The recession intensified and spread across both sides of the Atlantic with a fury that was unprecedented. A midst these challenging times we meet countries who took the bull by the horn and started introducing austerity measures to prop up their finances.
Published on the Malta Independant, issue Sunday, 5th December 2010
The recent attempts to bail out Greece and Ireland is a complicated business that has left many suffering souls who had believed that the euro was invincible and the bonanza of low interest rates would prevail in their profligate economies. Now they are paying a high price and their sovereign debt is in shaky territory.
Published on the Malta Today, issue 1st December 2010 It is encouraging to read that Malta Enterprise is active in promoting the island for scores of economic opportunities that are now nascent post the global crisis recovery. Taking a walk down memory lane, during the early seventies, then Prime Minister Dom Mintoff was active in pulling favours while touring the world and requesting dignitaries to invest in Malta.
Published on the Malta Independant, issue Sunday, 28 November 2010 An extract from the latest IMF report on Malta talks of the challenges that lie ahead but also the considerable opportunities. While the closer integration of the world economy magnified the impact of the current crisis, countries that reform their structures stand a better chance of speeding the recovery, as demand from the countries that first return to growth will take exports, and thus production, from their trading partners.
Published on the Malta Independant, issue Sunday, 4th November 2010 To quote Warren Buffet: “It’s only when the tide goes out that you realise who has been swimming naked”. To put his quote into context, one needs to recall the severe financial turmoil that gripped the Western world from 2008. Whereas before the sub-prime crisis everything seemed so rosy in the Wall Street garden, it had to be the sudden demise of Lehman Brothers (among other omens)...
Published on the Malta Today , issue 3rd November 2010
A lot has been written on how to ameliorate the double insularity of the sister island. Rivers of crocodile tears flowed and lamentations were uttered by politicians of different hues bestowing their heartfelt wishes to spur the island to a better economic future. But miracles cannot happen over night and with a restricted budget of euro 74 million not much can be done by the minister for Gozo except paying for recurrent expenditure.
Published on the Malta Independant, issue 31 October 2010
Malta’s Budget for 2011 was presented in Parliament on Monday as pouring rain pelted down with unprecedented fury. Yet we did not take to the streets protesting as they did in France and Britain, so only torrential rains wreaked havoc by flooding this small island.
Published on the Malta Today , issue 27th October 2010
Last year it was a cold shower for the boffins in Brussels faced with the sudden demise of the Greek economy. This lack of preparedness has taken the EU bureaucrats by surprise and a special task force of finance ministers was swiftly set-up to analyse what went wrong. The financial distress of one so called bad apple has impinged on the stability of the euro.
Published on the Malta Today, issue Wednesday, 20 October 2010
Wikipedia defines the Elephant in the room" as an idiom for an obvious truth that is being ignored or goes unaddressed. The idiomatic expression also applies to an obvious problem or risk no one wants to discuss. I used this title to discuss the unpalatable problem of a low index of national competitiveness.
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Published on the Malta Independant, issue 17 October 2010
Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi has warned that, notwithstanding the good results, Malta must not be complacent about tourism. Speaking at a seminar, he pointed out that the positive achievement of a 12 per cent rise in performance, coupled with an improvement of 20 per cent in tourist expenditure, needs to be sustained in the years to come. Read Article..
Published on the Malta Independant, issue 13 October 2010
Reviewing the film Wall Street –Money never sleeps is not easy. Those who saw this sequel to Wall Street filmed in 1987 must have been surprised to see Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas) the ruthless corporate raider in 1987 is now a changed man.
Published on the Malta Independant, issue 10 October 2010
In the last decade, public confidence in the auditing profession was dented by corporate scandals such as Enron in the US, Dutch retailer Ahold, Parmalat in Italy and Societe Generale in France (to name a few), and lately the Madoff scandal.
Published on the Malta Today, issue 6 October 2010
One wonders how the incidence of bullying takes place at so many levels of society in this tiny island of ours. To start with it is commonly associated with the trauma felt by pupils during the prep school but this is also existent in later stages of the educational ladder.
Published on the Malta Independant, issue 03 October 2010
Now that the pre-budget document has been published, the minister is making a clarion call for closer consultation with the constituted bodies and others. It is therefore timely to analyse where we stand in terms of economic development in comparison with the so-called Mediterranean countries. Read Article..
Published on the Malta Today, issue 29 September 2010
It was a stunning experience last Sunday attending Sir Elton John's concert and what a cheerful crowd there was to greet him on the ‘fosos’. I paid euro 80 for a seat which was half a kilometre away from the main stage but thanks to binoculars I could follow the show (not so others next to me) .
Published on the Malta Independant, issue 26th September 2010
Imagine, if you can, Malta voting not to join the EU (a Switzerland in the Med) while at the same time trying to attract multi-national remote gaming companies to host their servers and offer bets to foreigners. This would have been very difficult but, since accession, our EU membership provides a bedrock protection against barriers to trade. Online gaming in Malta has blossomed and is its pride and the envy of others.
Published on the Malta Today , issue 22 September 2010 The writer has been invited for the third year to attend a Public Welfare Conference in China to be held in November 2010. The event is organized by the Ministry of Welfare in conjunction with Peking University and has been very well attended by a number of researchers and professors on lottery and player welfare in the Asia.
Published on the Malta Independant, issue 19th September 2010
Recession has not spared the local telecoms sector, which now has more than six operators all competing in a miniscule market. But not everything is doom and gloom since GO Group (formerly Maltacom plc) this quarter reported improved growth in broadband, data and TV services, which have compensated for the decline it continues to experience in traditional fixed-voice services.
Published on the Malta Independant, issue 12th September 2010
Concerns over the sovereign debt crisis in countries such as Greece, Latvia, Spain and Ireland, and growing deficits in Europe, have prompted decisions to cut social spending together with measures to raise taxes and the pursuit of significant austerity measures.
Published on the Malta Independant, issue 05 September 2010
While most European jurisdictions are waking up to the reality that nothing can stop Internet gaming, it transpires that a South African judge has just outlawed the sector. As a result, it is an offence for Internet service providers (ISPs) to facilitate online gambling, and for the media to run advertisements promoting Internet gaming. Read Article..
Published on the Malta Independant, issue 29 August 2010
The government is planning to set up offshore wind farms in a bid to reduce Malta’s dependency on oil for electricity generation. One may lament the fact that progress in this direction has been slow, but by 2020 the government is committed to obtaining at least 10 per cent of Malta’s energy from renewable sources. Read Article..
Published on the Malta Independant, issue 22 August 2010
With news of the latest court action taken by a local institutional investor against Bank of Valletta (BOV) and its associated fund administrators, we see that the “silly season” is not that silly at all and the investor may face a bumpy ride during court proceedings. Read Article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 25th August 2010 The writing has been on the wall for a number of years that the Italians will do their utmost to compete with other gaming jurisdictions in a bid to win over the lucrative European market. In my opinion it is now close to succeed. Amid the bureaucracy of Berlusconi’s administration, emerged a refined and competitive set of gaming regulations which are expected to be of direct competition to other jurisdictions including us.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 11th August 2010
It is encouraging to read that Malta Enterprise is active in promoting the island for scores of economic opportunities that are now nascent post the global crisis recovery. Taking a walk down memory lane, during the early seventies, then Prime Minister Dom Mintoff was active in pulling favours while touring the world and requesting dignitaries to invest in Malta. Read Article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 4th August 2010
A Sunday Times journalist described the privatisation of public transport by saying: “Malta could have one of the “youngest, most modern and environmentally friendly transport fleets in Europe by March if negotiations with the preferred transport bidder are concluded quickly.”
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Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 28th July 2010 Many have been curious to see the results of so called stress tests applied to a selected group of European banks. It is curious to see why such tests were carried out now and not at the time of Lehman demise in 2008 but then it must be the politics of the exercise dictated otherwise.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 21 July 2010 Last Monday PKF Malta hosted the seminar “EU...Urging a Pension Reform” which focused on various topics. The seminar brought the main stakeholders together to discuss and analyse the current situation, to objectively assess pension reform and examine the options that are open to government, unions, and the private sector alike. The event was opened by Hon. Dr Spiteri on behalf of Hon. Dolores Cristina. Read article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 14 July 2010 PKF will be organizing a half day seminar on the pension reform next Monday July 19, A topic which was recently discussed by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi during an E.U. summit in Brussels. The event is aimed to attract attention from economists, government ministries, trade unions and the general public.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 07 July 2010 Pension’s reform is an issue that urgently needs to be addressed. There have been a number of developments both in Malta as well as overseas with regards to this problem. The aim of this seminar is to bring the main stakeholders together to discuss and analyse the situation – to objectively assess pension reform and examine the options that are open to government, unions, and the private sector alike.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 30 June 2010 It is not surprising that no clear consensus emerged out of the latest G20 summit which was held in Toronto. The group includes the world’s richest and emerging nations covering two-thirds of the world’s population. It includes Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and Turkey in addition to the big European economies, the United States and Canada.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 23 June 2010
It was seven years ago that PKF organized a morning seminar entitled ‘Pensions Reform’. The problem then, was amply discussed by a wide forum of speakers ranging from employers, trade unions, pensioners, the social affairs minister and his opposition shadow. Has anything changed since then? Not much as the shortfall in fact has deteriorated as evidenced by a warning shot from Brussels.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 16 June 2010
It is soccer time again and the fans are tuned in to follow their favourite team, while enjoying the balmy summer weather and big screens. Yes this time the FIFA World Cup is welcomed in Malta as in other parts of the world as an elixir which makes us forget the opprobrium of daily life.
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Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 09 June 2010
Malta welcomes any rationalistion of the online gaming sector which is generating a generous contribution to its GDP. Finance minister Tonio Fenech speaking at a local gaming conference last month, revealed that over 250 active licenses are in play.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday,02 June 2010
Much has been said by British Eurosceptics about the flagging state of health of the eurozone economy. Now 60 years after the sun set on the once great British Empire pundits still see the Union Jack enjoying the respect and glory of pre-war status. Such euro sceptics view the decision not to discard the Sterling by joining the euro with vindication seeing that the euro has depreciated so suddenly against the dollar.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 26 May 2010
We anticipate having a new parliament building designed by the world known Italian architect Renzo Piano, and some may also wonder whether a Stock Exchange currently housed in an ex-Services Garrison church will also be relocated there. Read Article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 19 May 2010 Malta is home to a noteworthy number of Ucits, non-Ucits retail funds and PIFs. The most significant growth over the last years has been in professional investor funds (PIFs). At the moment the total number of hedge funds in Malta is reaching around 500, including 280 alternative funds.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 12 May 2010
Last month we read about Goldman Sachs International being charged with fraud by the SEC amid claims that the bank misled investors about risks of their managed securities backed by sub-prime mortgages during the housing crisis. Later on the UK Financial Service Authority (FSA) launched an investigation which co-incided with Goldman’s stellar first-quarter results . Read Article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 05 May 2010 It is a mystery how very little has been written by financial commentators on the spectacular loss suffered by local insurance flagship Middlesea (MSI) last December. Reading the chairman’s report presented by Joe FX Zahra who replaced Mario C Grech, he explains little what went so wrong after acquiring the Italian subsidiary in 2000 through the Spanish shareholder Mapfre Internacional.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 28th April 2010 At the 3rd Finance Malta annual conference to be held next Friday, I am invited to sit on a panel of experts that has been briefed to discuss Solvency II. It has only been almost a year since the Draft Solvency II Framework Directive was published by the European Commission. Read article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 24 April 2010
At the 3rd Finance Malta annual conference to be held next Friday, I am invited to sit on a panel of experts that has been briefed to discuss Solvency II. It has only been almost a year since the Draft Solvency II Framework Directive was published by the European Commission. Read Article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 21 April 2010 It does not rain but it pours when financial scandals are concerned. The bitter paradox is that the bad news about Goldman Sachs comes at a time when the global stock market is at a year’s high albeit the European market is hanging in the balance of the Greek debt crisis which may also spark a new credit contagion.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 14 April 2010
It is encouraging to read that Malta Enterprise is active in promoting the island for scores of economic opportunities that are now nascent post the global crisis recovery. This reminds one of the early seventies when the then Prime Minister Dom Mintoff used to be active in pulling favours touring the world and requesting dignatories to invest in Malta.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 07 April 2010 It was 1967 when I joined the Drydocks as a commercial apprentice. It was a time when openings for employment were limited; either you worked as a clerk or trained as a teacher. But with no ‘A’ levels I needed to help myself and upgrade my educational status so as a commercial apprentice I opted to study for a five year degree level course in accountancy.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 31 March 2010
It seems like another political slogan that has been misused by the Commission in the past years in a drive to impress voters these three words usher in a new vision for the next decade. The three words are coined as the motto for the new Europe 2020 strategy.
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Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 24 March 2010
Attending a conference in Sydney this week as part of a ten day business trip, I could not help but compare the state of our micro economy to that of the continent down-under. Without going into specifics one can safely say that the aussies have proudly shouldered the recession much better than most would have expected. Read Article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 17 March 2010 Hot on the heels of the Madoff scandal we now have a damning report issued by the examiner of Lehman’s bankruptcy, and it does not make for bedtime reading. Lehman’s bankruptcy can best be described as the iconic event of this financial crisis just as Enron’s implosion defined the start of the dot.com meltdown.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 10 March 2010 With over 350 online gaming companies registered in Malta, it comes as no surprise that the other EU Member States may be envious of our success. What started as a feeble attempt in 2001 by the Gaming Board to slightly open the door for issuance of limited sports betting licences has slowly led to a full scale policy structure in 2004, paving the way towards full licensing. Read article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 03 March 2010 The incidence of financial fraud has increased, probably as a consequence of the amplified pressures due to a dose of recession affecting the commercial world. This has exacerbated the pressures on auditors across the globe to look out for financial fraud which leads to material mis-statements arising out of intentional fraud and sometimes out of unintentional errors. Read article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 24 February 2010
A reader emailed me telling me that my contribution last week omitted Italy from the group of countries making up PIIGS. This is true and quite honestly from my research it appears that there is hesitancy about what the second “I “stands for in PIIGS.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 17 February 2010 Some optimists argue that this year should see grass shoots and that the world economy is steady on course towards recovery, following the global financial crisis, but volatility remains because of lingering uncertainty. Read article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 10 February 2010 Malta has a nascent yet established industry concerning the online betting and casinos. In the past years this has been developed to become the envy of other EU states. With the enactment of the Lotteries and Other Games Act, 2001 this saw the start of a comprehensive legislative instrument thereby providing the necessary tools to implement effective regulation. Read article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 03 February 2010 Last week I published the first part of an article commenting on the reform of public transport. Here is my final and last episode. It appears that no tears were shed by commuters in the direction of the transport workers following the termination of their licences. Read article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 27 January 2010 It looks like a pitched battle is looming ahead with government wanting to reform public transport and the bus owners wanting more for their business. As always its the poor taxpayer that will foot the bill for whatever compromise is reached. We recall how the Mid-Med bank with its dozens of high street properties and good business record was sold for a song and dance on the pretext that it was loaded with extra workers. Read article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 20 January 2010 Parties on both sides of the global-warming debate have called the UN Climate Change Conference recently held in Copenhagen, a failure. Instead of producing a legally binding treaty to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, a majority of participating nations merely agreed to “take note” of the Copenhagen accord as a non-binding agreement to commit to significant emission reductions by next year and to fund environmentally “vulnerable” countries. Read article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 13 January 2010 The impression one might get from hearing the New Year resolutions by the ruling party is that of a biblical allegory when a latter-day Moses alias the Prime Minister, has led the Maltese people to the promised lands and defied the raging waters by miraculously providing a means of access right through the turbulent valley of global recession. Read article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 06 January 2010 Many are still hopeful that the worst effect of the 2007/9 recession is slowly residing and there will be an economic reprieve this year. This shows from the encouraging rally in shares over the New Year and the fact that optimism is linked to fluctuations in dollar value and rising oil prices. Read article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 30 December 2009 Last week I wrote a short article about how to survive Christmas debts and commented briefly on the addictive powers of credit cards that give us ostentatious power to spend beyond our means. Not surprisingly I have not received any feedback from banks. But then again I hardly ever receive any feedback, having written 52 weekly articles on Business Today. Read article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 23 December 2009 In the US and Europe, the tradable goods sector of the economy faces a cold shower as growth slows. We may not be heading for a depression anymore but a recovery is weak and may even turn out to be a double dip one. In the US, signs of sluggish growth and low inflation in the economy has discouraged market investors and recently increased the likelihood that the Federal Reserve might cut interest rates again. Read article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 16 December 2009 With less than ten days to Christmas, it is sad to note that the European financial scene is not geared up for the usual cheer and bonanza associated with the season. Too much turbulence has hit the headlines while political leaders are struggling to steer confidence and shy away from the people’s perception of doom and gloom.
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 09 December 2009 Over the last few years, public confidence in the auditing of company accounts has been seriously shaken by corporate scandals such as Enron in the US, Dutch retailer Ahold, Italy’s Parmalat and Societe Generale in France (just to name a few). Read article..
Published on the Business Today, issue Wednesday, 02 December 2009 The news concerning the Dubai debt repayment crisis as announced last Thursday, was certainly not unexpected but few predicted its impact on the world financial markets. Thus, it was not so surprising that the U.S. dollar edged up from 14-year lows against the yen as renewed risk aversion prompted investors to shed riskier assets. Read article..
