Calamatta Cuschieri has been around for a long time. How has the company grown and developed throughout the years? 

Since pioneering the local financial services industry back in 1972, Calamatta Cuschieri has certainly come a long way and achieved many major milestones. The company has transformed itself from a family run business to a fully-fledged  financial services company while retaining the core values of offering a personalised and high value service. The turning point for the company was probably in 2008 when we achieved our Category 3 licence which allowed us to deal directly in international markets, thus assuring best possible execution for our clients.

Can you expand on any other recent milestones?

In 2009 we launched Calamatta Cuschieri Fund Services which provides a full range of fund administration services to funds.  We also launched Calamatta Cuschieri Investment Management to service corporate and institutional clients such as insurances and other companies as well as funds.

There has been a strong recruitment drive recently. What sort of people is CC managing to attract?

Calamatta Cuschieri is committed to attracting and selecting only the top people in the business to join our team. We reward high achievers, listen to our employees’ input and support them with like-minded colleagues, the best possible systems and the decision making authority to provide an immediate response. We recognise that this is the only way to deliver the calibre of information and personal service that is truly effective in building and managing wealth.

In just over 12 months, the company’s staff count has grown by 25%, which is a result of the management’s commitment to continue to invest in talented people and improve upon the service we are offering. We have managed to build a great team.

Calamatta Cuschieri has announced a number of recent products and services. What are the highlights?

The products we have launched recently were the CC WebTrader™ and the CC Funds™.

CC WebTrader™ is Malta’s first and only live online trading platform that trades in 35 markets from 10 euros per trade. This platform, which won the award of Malta’s best ecommerce site, is a proprietary trading platform which allows clients to trade live or simply access their accounts in real-time. The platform’s powerful features yet easy to use interface has contributed to its success.

The CC Funds™ are UCITS funds, a gold standard for retail funds in the EU, and are ideal for retail investors as they have been specifically designed to ensure diversification and liquidity through distinct parameters, permitted asset classes and investment restrictions as set out in EU law.

Currently the UCITS funds come in the form of the High Income Bond Funds that are denominated in euro and USD and available as distributor and accumulator classes. The Sicav has also launched the euro equity fund which aims to achieve a higher level of return by investing in a diversified portfolio of Europe’s largest companies. To date the funds have had an outstanding performance.

What makes these products and services different from those offered by your competitors? 

In everything we do, our aim is to provide products and services that are high quality and provide good value to clients. More importantly we only create products and services that we honestly believe in and that we are proud to put our name to. We also give a lot of importance to the performance of our offerings and we ensure that our offerings meet international standards.

You have recently also set up a cancer foundation. What are its aims and why focus on cancer?

Corporate social responsibility has always been high on Calamatta Cuschieri's agenda and we felt it was time to take it a step further by focusing on one area which would enable us to really make a difference.

Malta is still mourning the loss of Nirvana Azzopardi, Helen Muscat and many other lesser known great people who have been lost to this disease over the years. However, we believe that mourning our loved ones is not enough. As scientific progress is made and cancer treatment worldwide is continuing to make substantial improvements, we must ensure that everyone with cancer has access to these important advances. The foundation also aims to promote healthy living through activities that bring people together.

How is this foundation working? Where will the money go? 

The CC Cancer Foundation is working closely with the health department towards the provision of the most advanced cancer treatment and facilities. We are currently in talks with the health department to be able to set the first goal for the foundation.

Last week you held a Walk for Cancer with Gianluca. How did it go and is this the start of more to come?

The walk for cancer was a huge success and the response was a positive one. The foundation collected €2,100 from donations and Calamatta Cuschieri matched the figure to make it a total of €4,200. Richard Geres started off the event with a warm up before the walk and participation was all inclusive. It was a great feeling to see people get together and take part in a healthy activity for a good cause. There was a real feel good factor in the air. The health department was present with their own stand and they also had a nutritionist present. The walk itself was social and fun, people brought their kids and dogs along and some decided to jog the route. Gianluca closed off the event with a smile and together with his band provided entertainment to the crowd. This is definitely the start of many events that we shall be hosting.

Many Maltese still tend to save money in traditional ways, such as bank accounts. What are the benefits of investing?

Investing typically provides returns that are higher than what fixed accounts can provide. Investing can also offer the flexibility of providing immediate liquidity when needed. A carefully managed investment portfolio can also be a way of planning one’s retirement. However it is crucial to obtain investment advice from a qualified independent investment advisor who will be able to recommend suitable investments according to one’s needs. Everyone’s financial position is different and therefore there is no hard and fast rule for investing.

How have trends changed along the years?

The internet has helped to provide a wealth of information and educational material about investing. As a result Maltese investors have become more knowledgeable and open to newer investment ideas, such as equity investing. Today investors take a more proactive approach to investing as they are able to monitor and implement their investments more efficiently. Investors today appreciate the need for a balanced investment portfolio for long term investment.

What does the future hold for Calamatta Cuschieri?

Calamatta Cuschieri is a dynamic company which is continuously evolving. We have quite a few exciting projects in the pipeline and we trust that these will continue to strengthen the company’s position as one of Malta’s leading and most trusted financial services firms. In the coming month Calamatta Cuschieri will be launching the CC Momentum Account™ which is a flexible savings plan that allows people to save from as little as 50 euro per month.