ARTICLE
17 November 2017

"The Regulatory Intervention In Fintech Could Make Or Break Its Development" – Minister Scicluna

FM
Finance Malta

Contributor

Finance Malta is a non-profit public-private initiative set up to promote Malta as an international financial centre, both within, as well as outside Malta. It brings together, and harnesses, the resources of the industry and government, to ensure Malta maintains a modern and effective legal, regulatory, and fiscal framework in which the financial services sector can continue to grow and prosper. The Board of Governors, together with the founding associations: The Malta Funds Asset Servicing Association, the Malta Bankers Association, the Malta Insurance Association, the Association of Insurance Brokers, the Malta Insurance Managers Association, the Institute of Financial Services Practitioners; its members and staff are all committed to promote Malta as an innovative international.
"The nature of the regulatory response to FinTech is a critical topic for both regulators and market participants.
Malta Technology

"The nature of the regulatory response to FinTech is a critical topic for both regulators and market participants. The challenge is to identify when the regulator should step in - the regulatory 'tipping point' between allowing innovation to develop without regulatory intervention and taking regulatory initiatives. Malta's evolving approach towards Fintech is one that aspires at tapping the significant benefits, including cost reductions, efficiency gains and more transparency, while allowing these technologies the space to grow," said the Finance Minister Edward Scicluna while addressing the Fintech Conference organised by KPMG.

He stated that we must achieve a delicate balance between fostering innovation and supporting the pursuit of opportunities associated with financial technology, while at the same time safeguard consumer protection and address any risk that may emerge from the rapid rate of expansion of the financial technology industry. This will be our key policy challenge going forward and we must concentrate all our efforts in order to get the balance right. If regulation turns out to be too awkward and burdensome, we could easily be losing a great opportunity to turn our economy into the truly competitive economy of the future we want it to be.

Professor Scicluna added that if we take too long to home in on the emerging risks and are late in addressing them, we run the risk of succumbing to market disruption with possible negative effects on financial stability and consumer confidence. 

"The efficiency of our policies will ultimately determine the success we make of the FinTech revolution over the next few critical years," concluded the Finance Minister.

Source: PRESS RELEASE BY THE MINISTRY FOR FINANCE

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