“MFSA Annual Report: Malta’s Financial Sector Continues to Thrive with 11.8% Growth in 2023…”

The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) released its Annual Report, highlighting the stability and resilience of the Maltese financial services industry in 2023.

The number of people employed in the local financial services sector grew by nearly 6,500 between 2019 and 2023

Financial Stability and Industry Strength

Malta’s financial services sector is a major player in the country’s economic success. Between 2022 and 2023, the financial services sector witnessed a robust growth of 11.8% contributing significantly to the country’s Gross Value Added (GVA).  During the year under review, the sector generated €1,251 million in GVA. The number of people employed in the local financial services sector has also grown by nearly 6,500 people in absolute terms between 2019 and 2023. The Authority received 352 applications for new licences across all sectors during the year, 84% of which were approved and 16% withdrawn or refused.

Consumer Protection and Innovation

Making sure that financial entities play fair and that consumers feel safe is part of the MFSA’s mission. The report details the Authority’s efforts to safeguard consumer interests through increased oversight, and a greater emphasis on compliance within the financial sector. The Authority increased its supervisory interactions by 50% between 2023 and 2024, with a continued emphasis on financial crime compliance. During the year, 77 enforcement actions were taken, amounting to €444,800 in penalties.

With a proactive stance on digital resilience and cybersecurity, the Authority looks at innovation as complementary to consumer protection, noting that when balanced correctly, they are the forces that can drive the industry forward.

LifeStar Insurance publishes 2023 results following repeated delays, reports €1.6 million pre-tax profit

Following a series of delays, LifeStar Insurance Group published its Annual Report for the financial year ended 31st December 2023 and reported a pre-tax profit of €1.6 million.

LifeStar Insurance Group, formerly Global Capital is comprised of LifeStar Insurance plc and LifeStar Health Limited.

Earlier this year, LifeStar Insurance announced that there were technical delays in the implementation and integration of third-party software for the computation of financial statements under the IFRS 17 standard. The publication of the report had to be pushed back twice.

This new standard, which came into effect at the start of 2023, details how insurance contracts items should be reported, how to measure them, and how to present information.

As a result of these changes, LifeStar Insurance had to reassess its 2022 results to be aligned with IFRS 17.

At group level, LifeStar Insurance Group faced a challenging year due to the introduction of new accounting standards, yet still recorded positive results.

Insurance revenue remained strong at €5.6 million, increasing marginally from 2022’s €5.5 million. When deducting service expenses, insurance service results closed off 2023 at €2.3 million, up from the €1.4 million in 2022.

One of the main drivers for profitability was net investment income, which went from a negative €11.2 million in 2022 to a positive €7.9 million in 2023. This was mainly a result of a change of net fair value from a loss in 2022 of €12.2 million to a gain of €6.3 million on investments.

As a result, LifeStar Insurance Group posted a pre-tax profit at the end of 2023 of €1.6 million, a substantial improvement from the €4 million pre-tax loss in 2022.

The IFRS 17 had a substantial impact on LifeStar Insurance Group’s retained earnings which increased to €14.5 million in 2023 from an IFRS 4 position in 2022 of €5.8 million.

This change is significant because most of the retained earnings are distributable reserves as these are mainly due to releases from the technical provisions that existed under the IFRS 4 standard.

 

Malta Company Announcements:

Malta International Airport plc

Traffic through Malta International Airport in June rose by 13.9 per cent compared to the same month the previous year, to total 858,738 passenger movements.

Airport operations peaked towards the end of the month, as 33,269 passengers travelled to or from Malta on 207 flights on the 27th of June. Aircraft movements for the month of June were also up by 14.7 per cent, while seat capacity registered an increase of 13.5 per cent. Registering a marginal improvement of 0.3 pp over the same month in 2023, seat load factor stood at 86.6 per cent.

The top driver of passenger traffic for the month remained the Italian market, with a market share of just over 23 per cent, followed by the United Kingdom (21.0 per cent market share), Germany (8.1 per cent market share), France (7.7 per cent market share) and Poland (5.2 per cent market share).

Passengers are urged to plan their journey in advance.

Malta International Airport has published a traffic pattern guidance, indicating the busiest operational times during the summer months, to enable passengers who are set to depart from the airport over the coming weeks to plan their journey in advance. The guidance was accompanied with a set of travel tips, which have been published on the airport website, as well as signage which has been installed inside the terminal to guide guests along their journey.

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