17-518: MFSA may refer to: Business and finance [ edit ] Malta Financial Services Authority , a Maltese financial regulator Manitoba Forage Seed Association, a Canadian nonprofit organization Education [ edit ] Masters Student Finance Association , a finance student organization Religion [ edit ] Methodist Federation for Social Action , an independent network of United Methodist clergy and laity Topics referred to by
34-814: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Malta Financial Services Authority The Malta Financial Services Authority ( MFSA ) is the main financial regulator of Malta . The MFSA was founded in 2002 when it assumed the responsibilities of the Central Bank of Malta , the Malta Stock Exchange , and the Malta Financial Services Centre. It regulates banking , investment , insurance , financial , pension companies and securities markets in Malta. The MFSA has
51-887: Is now known as the Malta Business Registry (MBR). In June 2016, the MFSA drew criticism from the MEP Sven Giegold for poor regulatory supervision of the Maltese financial institutions. In 2018, Joseph Cuschieri was appointed as CEO of the Malta Financial Services Authority. He started his position accompanied by his close friend Edwina Licari, and during their time at the MFSA, they had more than 35 “business trips” together, where €0.5 million from taxpayers’ money were spent. In 2020, Joseph Cuschieri decided to resign from
68-590: The Armed Forces of Malta intercepting and arresting him as a "person of interest" in the Caruana Galizia murder enquiry. Fenech went on to offer himself as a witness. He promised information about the murder case and other offenses, in exchange for immunity. The request was not granted. On 30 November 2019, an indictment was filed against Fenech, and he was accused of complicity in the murder of Caruana Galizia. Fenech pleaded not guilty. Six days after
85-764: The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority , the European Securities and Markets Authority , the International Organization of Securities Commissions , and the International Association of Insurance Supervisors . The MFSA was demerged from the Registry of Companies in 2018 in order to focus on its regulatory role and duties. The Registry of Companies is now a stand-alone agency and
102-492: The ECB. In October 2018, the MFSA froze the assets of SataBank due to anti-money laundering concerns. The freeze resulted in vocal criticism of the bank's account holders. The bank is co-owned by Christo Georgiev, the owner of LeoPay startup. In August 2019, the Malta Financial Services Authority became embroiled in scandal after paying €150,000 severance to its human resources department director, George Spiteri, who later
119-699: The Maltese government, in November 2019 Fenech was arrested as a suspect in the murder of the investigative-journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia . He is a key figure in the 2019 Malta political crisis and 2019 protests in Malta . Fenech is a prominent Maltese businessman. He was identified in 2018 as being the owner of the Dubai -registered company 17 Black . The company was listed in the Panama Papers and investigative journalist Caruana Galizia had written about 17 Black eight months before her death, alleging
136-466: The arrest of Fenech, Keith Schembri resigned his government post as Chief of Staff, and was subsequently questioned by the police. Schembri was later released on police bail. The doctor Adrian Vella was also arrested for questioning. Vella's name also occurred in a number of companies registered or managed via Panama. He is said to have served as a secret messenger between Schembri and Fenech. Fenech, in his court statement, accused Schembri of being
153-500: The car bomb attack. In November 2019, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat announced a deal with Melvin Theuma, a suspected middleman in the murder. Theuma was thought to be able to provide comprehensive information about the murder case and other crimes, and received a presidential pardon in exchange for information relating to the mastermind of the murder. A day after Theuma's arrest, Fenech attempted to leave Malta on his private yacht, with
170-511: The company had links to Joseph Muscat 's chief of staff Keith Schembri and to former energy minister Konrad Mizzi . Later, the research group The Daphne Project came across e-mails between 17 Black and two shell companies in Panama, belonging to Mizzi or Schembri. The emails mentioned payments of up to $ 2 million for unspecified services. Mizzi was then Minister of Energy in Malta, Schembri Chief of Staff of Prime Minister Joseph Muscat. Fenech
187-456: The mastermind behind the Caruana Galizia murder. Schembri is also accused of having tried to influence Fenech in order to frame Christian Cardona as responsible for the murder of Caruana Galizia. The case is still ongoing. Fenech's multiple applications for bail were denied in May 2022, with the judge determining that he was a flight risk, citing his access to cryptocurrencies, plans to immigrate to
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#1732798244797204-481: The powers to regulate, monitor, and supervise the financial sector of Malta, protecting the interests of the consumers and promoting the market transparency and efficiency. It has the powers to review business practices, advise the government on policies, and to investigate potential harmful and unfair practices in the financial industry. The MFSA is a member of the European Banking Authority ,
221-438: The role due to the revelations of his closeness with Yorgen Fenech , the main suspect behind the assassination of journalist and anti-corruption activist Daphne Caruana . Edwina Licari still works at MFSA as a General Counsel with a high annual salary of €100,000. In March 2018, the MFSA took control of Pilatus Bank , a Maltese bank headed by Ali Sadr Hasheminejad, whose money laundering scheme of sanctioned Iranian money
238-404: The same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title MFSA . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=MFSA&oldid=786626631 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
255-629: Was CEO of the Tumas Group and a director of energy company ElectroGas Malta; in 2019 he resigned from both positions. On 25 November 2019 Tumas Group said that allegations linking Fenech to the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia were "alien to the Tumas Group's values". On 16 October 2017, investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia died in a car bomb attack close to her home, attracting widespread local and international reactions. In December 2017, three men were arrested in connection with
272-552: Was exposed by late Daphne Caruana Galizia . Later, in June, the MFSA asked the European Central Bank to withdraw Pilatus Bank's licence. In July of the same year, Pilatus Bank's depositors threatened to sue the MFSA for freezing €80 million in funds held by innocent victims. In October, the bank's directors followed with their own lawsuit to the MFSA. In November 2018, the bank's European licence has been withdrawn by
289-497: Was rehired for a similar position by the Malta Business Registry , which had branched out of the MFSA just a few weeks earlier. Yorgen Fenech Yorgen Fenech (born 23 November 1981) is a Maltese businessman whose main interests are casinos and hotels in Malta. He was head of the Tumas Group and director of the Maltese-Azerbaijan-German company ElectroGas Malta . Suspected of bribing members of
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