The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) is Malta‘s single regulator responsible for the supervision and regulation of financial services in Malta. The MFSA was established in October 2002 with the enactment of the Malta Financial Services Authority Act and succeeds the Malta Financial Services Centre that was established in 1994. The MFSA‘s goal is to provide a seamless regulatory function for financial services. The offices of the Registry of Companies are also housed within the MFSA building ensuring that financial service customers and practitioners will find all the services that they may require from the regulatory authorities relating to companies and financial services under one roof.

The Malta Financial Services Authority requires financial services practitioners to adhere to the highest standards of probity and honesty while it issues licenses only to persons who satisfy the fit and proper test – involving an examination of both knowledge and reputation/good standing within the industry thus serving as an initial safeguard to the industry‘s reputation and that of Malta as a jurisdiction for financial services.

Malta‘s importance as a jurisdiction for financial services is ever increasing with a number of international companies setting up operations from Malta in the investment fund industry, captive insurances and general international insurance companies together with players within the international banking industry. Being a relatively recent addition to the European Union and Eurozone, coupled with the flexibility and approachability of the regulator Malta‘s importance as a jurisdiction for financial services seems likely to grow in the years to come.