FinanceMalta has just completed the sponsorship of Malta Week, a series of events that was held in Brussels last week to promote Malta’s growing reputation as a respected financial services jurisdiction.

FinanceMalta’s exhibition stand was located at the Malta Week event in Place Luxembourg, right in front of the European Parliament. The stand held a plasma screen that showed FinanceMalta’s promotional videos and podcasts while copies of the Investment Guide and Business Directory were distributed over the three-day exhibition period.

As part of Malta Week, FinanceMalta organized a public debate on "Europe's New Financial Supervision Package: Challenges and Opportunities for the Financial Services Sector". The debate, held on 6 October at the Malta Week venue, was well attended by EU diplomats, representatives of financial services firms and associations as well as the Malta delegation in Brussels.

The quality of Malta’s international standing in the financial sector, both as a jurisdiction and as a growing IFC, attracted high-ranking speakers for this debate. Professor Edward Scicluna, MEP opened the debate by saying that, although the financial and economic crisis has passed, the European Union was not out of the woods yet; budget deficits were running high and signs of protectionism were showing through on a global scale in the monetary policies of a number of countries.

Michel Barnier, European Commissioner for Internal Market and Services, emphasized the need for "…a financial sector that services the real economy." He expressed the belief that the package voted by the Commission, Parliament and the EU Council meets these criteria.

Eddy Wymeersch, ex-chairman of the Committee of European Securities Regulators (CESR) and of the European Regional Committee of IOSCO, addressed the importance of the new European supervision structure, which, in his opinion, is two-fold. First, he stressed the importance of having an enforcement mechanism. Second, he stated that national governments would no longer be in a position to add their own interpretations to those European rules concerning the financial sector.

Finance Minister Tonio Fenech made the point that not one Maltese bank had defaulted in the banking crisis. He discussed Europe’s battle with its third crisis. After the financial and economic crises, governments are now battling increasing budget deficits. He said that in order to restore trust in the financial system and the economy, the Union must show its citizens that it has learned from this crisis.