MFSA Chairman Joe Bannister told The Malta Independent today that both Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and former Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi knew of his involvement with investment companies.

He was being asked about the Paradise Papers revelations, released yesterday by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists following a global investigation on offshore activities by some of the world's most powerful people and companies. "The Paradise Papers documents include nearly 7 million loan agreements, financial statements, emails, trust deeds and other paperwork over nearly 50 years from inside Appleby, a prestigious offshore law firm with offices in Bermuda and beyond," the ICIJ reports.

"My involvement with investment companies had been declared with both prime ministers. Today I am no longer a director of anything," he said while adding that it had been cleared with the European Authorities. He stressed however, that he believes it was only the regulator (MFSA) who knew the details as to his role in the investment funds etc.

Asked whether he sees a conflict of interest or not, he said "today I am not a director of anything. When I was a director the arrangement was that these funds never invest in Malta. They were completely outside Malta."

The Times of Malta today reported that Joe Bannister was involved in the BVI firm ACP Special Situations No. 2 Limited, which serves as an investment vehicle for the London-based company ACPI. They report that Bannister was involved in the BVI-based company that invested in a Russian venture, and that e-mails sent by a company behind the Russian mining venture to offshore services firm Appleby referred to Prof. Bannister as being part of "management" in the BVI firm ACP Special Situations No. 2 Limited.

Bannister stressed that his involvement was as a non-executive director.

Regarding this ACPI-Russian mining venture investment, Bannister said that at a board meeting of ACP Special Situations No.2 Ltd it was advised that there would be an investment by the EBRD, and that the EBRD then invited ACPI to participate. "We agreed that they should participate."

"Around two years later we were told of some difficulties with this investment." Subsequent to that, for reasons, and the way things were developing here, he said he told them he was resigning in 2015 as he had to take care of the Maltese Presidency of the EU.

He said that he had no recollection of the name of the company - until it was published in the press, and didn't know it was in Russia.

He said that he is currently telling government that he wishes to retire from the MFSA as he has a personal situation and cannot continue dedicating so much time to the MFSA. "My contract ends at the end of 2019." He said that the sooner he retires the better as his situation at home has deteriorated and he needs more free time.

The trove of documents by the ICIJ also reveal the use of Maltese based companies by the world's rich and powerful. As an example, the ICIJ reports that "Pop singer and social justice activist Bono - listed under his full name, Paul Hewson - owned shares in a company registered in Malta that invested in shopping center in Lithuania, company records show... Bono was a ‘passive, minority investor' in the Malta company that closed down in 2015, a spokeswoman said." Reports also read that the Maltese legally registered company was voluntarily wound up in 2015.