In February 2023, the MFSA published its Strategic Statement for 2023 to 2025. This brief article will set out the backdrop to the Strategic Statement and the MFSA’s strategic pillars.
Context to the MFSA’s Strategic Statement
Over the past three years the global financial services sector had to steer through material challenges and high levels of uncertainty primarily owing to the pandemic. The qualities of adaptability and resilience were factors that helped Malta’s financial services to navigate through this tumultuous period. Despite these positive factors, the MFSA recognises that the road ahead remains unclear owing to current geo-political events and economic challenges. This requires Malta to enhance its financial stability and resilience while continuing to address continuing challenges. Moreover, while sustainable and digital finance are creating new opportunities they also add an extra layer of regulation and supervision which further adds to the depth and weight of regulation and supervision following the financial crises of 2009. It is in this political, economic and regulatory context that the MFSA published its Strategic Statement.
Strategic Pillars
The MFSA’s corporate strategy identified five pillars (or high-level areas) which it will focus on to achieve its statutory objectives in accordance with its mission[1] and vision.[2] These five strategic pillars are:
- Delivering agile and proactive regulation
- Sustaining a resilient, internationally networked financial sector
- Promoting good governance and compliance
- Embracing innovation
- Engaging with the public
These five strategic pillars (or strategic objectives) are complemented and supplemented by:
- two corporate objectives and three corporate priorities; and
- eleven regulatory objectives and twenty-seven strategic priorities.