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BOV fined for money laundering breaches in two cases

Bank of Valletta has been fined a total of €57,500 in two cases involving breaches of its anti-money laundering obligations. A notice published on the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit’s (FIAU) website says that, in the first case, BOV failed to flag how a factory worker who was later unemployed continued… Read More

London ballroom hosts showcase event for ‘golden passports’

Three prime ministers took to a stage in the ballroom of a five-star London hotel this week offering the world’s wealthiest people “golden passports” and citizenship of their countries in return for hundreds of thousands of pounds of investment or flat “contributions”. Allen Chastanet, the prime minister… Read More

EU heavyweight states push for joint supervisor against money laundering

The European Union’s largest states are pushing for the establishment of a new supervisory authority that would take over from states the oversight of money laundering at financial firms, after a series of scandals at the bloc’s banks. In a joint statement, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and Latvia… Read More

11th November 2019

One year since 17 Black was revealed – the story so far

It has been a year since a joint investigation by Times of Malta and Reuters revealed that power station investor Yorgen Fenech owned the mystery company 17 Black. On Monday, Keith Schembri is expected to testify for the first time about the 17 Black connection in a libel case. Jacob… Read More

7th November 2019

Malta: Financial services sector exposed to flows of funds from higher risk jurisdictions

Malta’s financial services sector is exposed to flows of funds from higher risk jurisdictions and customers, the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) has indicated in a report. This is mainly due to the exposure to flows of funds from higher-risk jurisdictions and customers, Malta’s economic policy, as well as the… Read More

4th November 2019

Venezuela’s business elite face scrutiny in $1.2 billion money laundering case

As Venezuela’s oil-based economy continues to crumble, a politically connected class of businessmen with financial ties to Miami has grown fabulously wealthy from energy deals with the socialist government. Among the Venezuelan upper crust who have made fortunes during the Bolivarian revolution: Alejandro Betancourt. Without any experience in the energy… Read More

4th November 2019

Court thwarts bid to stop Satabank €1.5m release to ‘dirty oil’ suspect

Malta’s financial regulator has lost a bid to stop the shuttered Satabank from releasing funds from the bank account of an offshore company belonging to ‘Dirty Oil’ suspect Gordon Debono. Debono is facing criminal charges related to a €30 million oil-smuggling ring in Catania, Sicily, together with conspirators Darren Debono,… Read More

1st November 2019

Gambling Commission CEO: Malta operators must improve compliance standards

Gambling Commission CEO Neil McArthur says the level of compliance among UK-facing operators based in Malta is currently “not good enough.” Referencing the outcome of Commission research from 2018, McArthur said 45 of 123 online operators were told to submit an action plan to raise compliance standards. A further 14… Read More

24th October 2019

Venezuela dirty money probe: Malta’s MFSA ordered to finalise Portmann review

Malta’s financial services tribunal has upheld a complaint by a wealth management firm embroiled in a United States investigation on dirty money from Venezuelan politicians, saying the regulator’s decision to stop Portmann Capital Management from taking on new clients was not in line with the law. The FST… Read More

23rd October 2019

Malta: Lawyers, accountants will have to register with the regulator to handle financial services companies

Lawyers, accountants, and notaries providing assistance to financial services firms will have to register with the Malta Financial Services Authority under proposed new rules. The MFSA is proposing to remove the exemption from registration for legal professionals and accountants as it tries to raise the bar for company service providers. Read More

22nd October 2019

Malta: Shelved €10,000 limit on cash to see the light of day

A ban on cash transactions over €10,000 is set to finally see the light of day, after being shot down by Cabinet when first proposed by Finance Minister Edward Scicluna four years ago. A source familiar with the 2015 proposal told Times of Malta that the government had little appetite… Read More

15th October 2019

MEP calls for stronger EU anti-money laundering efforts amid Deutsche Bank withdrawals

The withdrawal of Deutsche Bank from five eurozone countries, including Malta, shows the European Banking Union needs to up its game in the fight against money laundering, Sven Giegold said. The MEP said it was “an embarrassment” for the EBU when credit institutions withdraw from euro countries because of money… Read More

15th October 2019

Deutsche Bank pulls the plug on Malta

Deutsche Bank has confirmed it is pulling the plug on its correspondent banking services to local financial institutions, making it more difficult for them to offer dollar-denominated transactions. The decision follows on from a hard-hitting assessment by the Council of Europe’s anti-money laundering body about Malta’s failure to adequately combat… Read More

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