Month: February 2023

The Key Principles and What you Need to Know Today About Marine Insurance 

Posted on | by Hristina Georgieva

Malta and the Marine Sector Plus a Definition of Insurance

Malta has a long, rich maritime history and has the largest shipping register in Europe. Insurance is a topic that requires a detailed understanding of the options available, by the companies operating in this sector and professional advisors such as Dixcart Malta.

The contract of insurance is a contract under which one person (the insurer) is legally bound to pay a sum of money or its equivalent to another person (the insured), upon the happening of a specified event involving some element of uncertainty as to time or likelihood of occurrence, which affects the insured’s interest in the subject-matter of the insurance.
The objective is to indemnify the insured against losses attributed to marine adventure. The three main principles of marine insurance are: indemnity, insurable interest and utmost good faith.

The First Principle of Indemnity

The principle of indemnity, in the context of insurance, essentially has two elements:

  1. To ensure that the amount compensated or reimbursed shall not increase the assets of the insured in any way. An insurance policy can never be a source of benefit or profit for the insured;
  2. The amount of compensation or reimbursement should never exceed the value of the policy taken. The amount which has been agreed upon by the insured and the insurer, if any, is the upper limit of the compensation to be paid.

The Second Principle of Insurable Interest

This second principle is made up of the following:

  1. financial loss;
  2. the loss was caused by the peril insured against;
  3. the subject matter was covered by the policy;
  4. insurable interest.

An insurer normally requires:

  • The assured may benefit by the safety or due arrival of insurable property or be prejudiced by its loss, damage, or detention in respect of which he/she may incur liability;
  • The assured stands in a legal or equitable relationship to the adventure or to any insurable property at risk in such adventure; and

The benefit, prejudice or incurring of liability referred to in the first bullet point above, must arise in consequence of the legal or equitable relationship referred to in the second bullet point.

The Third Principal of Utmost Good Faith

The third and final principal of utmost good faith is embodied in The Marine Insurance Act.

A contract of marine insurance is a contract based upon the utmost good faith, and, if the utmost good faith is not observed by either party, the contract may be voided by the other party. The duty of utmost good faith requires both parties to ensure proper disclosure of all material circumstances and to avoid making misrepresentations about material facts, circumstances or beliefs.

If utmost good faith is shown not to have been observed by either party, the statutory duty enables the aggrieved party to rescind the contract ab initio, thereby restoring the parties to the position they were in, as if they had not entered into the contract.

The Courts have consistently ruled against allowing the insured’s duty of good faith, to be used by the insurer as an instrument to enable the insurer him/herself to act in bad faith. For the insurers to succeed in avoiding the contract, due to non-disclosure during the performance of the contract, the insurers would have to show that the claim was made fraudulently.

Types of Marine Insurance

The four main types of Marine Insurance are:

1.            Hull insurance: insurance of the vessel with its gear.

2.            Cargo insurance: insurance of goods carried by sea.

3.            Insurance against the liability of the carrier; protection and indemnity (P&I Clubs); 

              compulsory or mandatory insurance, voluntary insurance (e.g. liability for cargo).

4.            Other types of marine insurance; freight, salvage expenses and general  average

               contributions, insurance of containers, shipyards, oil rigs (“energy”), etc.

The Marine Insurance Policy

The contract must be in a policy that specifies: the name of the insured, the subject-matter, the risks, the voyage or period of time covered by the insurance, the sum insured, and the name of the insurer. It must also bear the signature of the insurer or his/her representative.

A policy is voided when there is:

  • Any implied condition as to the commencement of risk: the adventure shall be commenced within a reasonable time, otherwise the insurer may avoid the contract.
  • Alteration of port of departure: the risk does not attach and the insurer may avoid the contract.
  • Sailing to different destinations: the risk does not attach.
  • Change of voyage: the insurer is discharged from liability as from the time of the change. Manifest intention to change the voyage is sufficient. This must be a voluntary change of destination.
  • Deviation: the insurer is discharged from liability as from the time of deviation. Where there are several ports of discharge, these must proceed in the order designated by the policy. If not then there is a deviation.
  • Delay: the adventure must be commenced within a reasonable time period.

There are various ‘excuses’ for deviation or delay, the main ones being: lack of authorisation (“held covered” provisions), the safety of the ship, saving human life, and events beyond the master’s control.

Additional Information

For further information about the Malta Maritime matters please contact Jonathan Vassallo, at the Dixcart office in Malta: advice.malta@dixcart.com.

Alternatively, please speak to your usual Dixcart contact.

The End of the Portuguese Golden Visa has been Confirmed

Posted on | by Rebecca Beard

Dixcart previously shared an article in December 2022 suggesting the end of the Portuguese Golden Visa was in sight.

On 16 February 2023, it was confirmed by the Portuguese Prime Minister, Antonio Costa, that the Golden Visa programme will be coming to an end (however confirmation of when it will end and how, is yet to be confirmed).

At this point it is unclear what actions are required until the Portuguese government makes further announcements, as well as how this news may impact renewals of current Golden Visa applications, as it has also been proposed there may be changes to the current requirements for existing Golden Visa applicants.

During the week of 13 February 2023, Portugal has been the second European country to end their Golden Visa, following Ireland. The programme was intended to encourage foreign investment into Portugal and was first introduced ten years ago, in 2012, to aid the recovery from the financial crisis. It has been particularly popular among wealthy Chinese citizens, however, other citizens who have also taken an interest include Brazilians, Turkish, South African and United Arab Emirates.

So far the Portuguese Golden Visa has been one of the world’s most popular residency-by-investment programmes, raising €6.6 billion from over 20,000 individuals (according to the Portuguese Immigration and Border Services), with a spectrum of benefits, including the right to live, work and study in Portugal, visa-free travel within the Schengen Area for a period of five years, and a minimum average stay requirement in Portugal of only seven days per annum.

Register of Overseas Entities with Property Interests in the UK – An Update and Reminder

Posted on | by Hristina Georgieva

Action Still Needed

The Deadline Has Passed – Action Still Needed

The deadline of 31 January 2023, for the registration of overseas entities with property interests in the UK, with Companies House has now past.

An estimated 13,000 relevant overseas entities had not registered by the deadline, approximately 40% of the total. 

Considerable work needs to be committed to the verification process, before an application for registration can be made.  

In addition, overseas entities that owned a qualifying estate on February 28, 2022 and have subsequently disposed of their interest, are also caught by the rules.

A summary is listed below. For comprehensive detail, please see our previous article here.

Who needs to register?

The beneficial owner of any overseas entity (being a corporate body, partnership or other legal person) governed by the laws of a country or territory outside of the United Kingdom that owns, leases or disposes of qualifying real estate.

Submission of information and verification

The register is a digital service with information submitted in English.

Before any application for first registration or later updating applications/rectifications and amendments can take place, the information will be subject to formal verification by a relevant person.

Broadly, a relevant person includes an independent legal professional, financial institutions, auditors, estate agents, auction platforms etc. 

Once the information has been verified the relevant person will need to confirm to the  Companies House Registrar that it has completed verification in accordance with the new Act and regulations and provide a  statement complying with Part 2 (5) of The Register of Overseas Entities (VPI) Regulations 2022.  If the relevant entity has made no relevant dispositions between 28 February 2022 and the date the application is made, the application must state this.

The information itself must be retained by the relevant person for a period of 5 years.

What happens once registration is accepted?

Companies House then publish the identity on a public register and assign a unique Overseas Entity ID. The name of the relevant entity and their agent will be available to the public on the Companies House website. The Overseas Entity ID will be required by the Land Registry before it registers any dealings relating to real estate in England & Wales.

The 2022 Act requires registered entities to update their information annually.

Secondary legislation allows individuals to be able to protect some of their information from public disclosure in limited circumstances (if it can be shown that an individual, or the people they reside, with will be at serious risk of violence or intimidation).

Failure to comply with registration and/or within the time limits imposed?

In England and Wales a person guilty of an offence is liable on summary conviction to a daily fine of up to £2,500 or unlimited fines and a prison sentence of up to 5 years. Failure to register will also prevent any dealings with the real estate in question.

What can Dixcart do to help you?

We can keep you up to date of the latest developments, assist and advise you on your obligations and aid in collecting the required information.

We can also verify the required information for you and make the application for registration to Companies House and communicate the unique Overseas Entity ID number to you as well as process annual returns.

Additional Measures in the Future

Following the introduction of the  Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) 2022 Act (“ECTE ACT”), which came into force on 01 August 2022, the UK Government is now seeking further measures with the introduction of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill, which is already past Committee stage in the House of Commons. 

The register of overseas entities will be amended to maintain consistency with changes intended to the Companies Act 2006.

Amongst the other far reaching and significant changes intended by the Bill are:

  • reforms to Companies House including the introduction of identity verification for all new and existing registered company directors
  • reforms to prevent the abuse of limited partnerships by tightening registration requirements and increasing transparency
  • additional powers to seize and recover suspected criminal crypto assets by boosting criminal confiscation powers
  • reforms to give businesses more confidence to share information in order to tackle money laundering and other economic crime
  • new intelligence gathering powers for law enforcement and removal of nugatory burdens on business.

Additional Information

If you have any questions or think you may need to register your overseas entity, please get in touch with the Dixcart office in the UK: advice.uk@dixcart.com.

Swiss Annual Returns Explained

Posted on | by Hristina Georgieva

The Popularity of Switzerland

Switzerland’s tax system is among the world’s most attractive for both corporations and individuals. Offering one of the lowest tax rates in Europe, Switzerland is popular with leading international companies and their internationally qualified employees.

The Swiss tax system is decentralized, most taxes are administered by the cantonal tax administrations which are responsible for collecting federal, cantonal and any local tax. There are 26 cantons in Switzerland and the cantonal tax administrations are audited by the Federal administration.

The Rule and the Purpose

Each year individuals and companies based in Switzerland, must complete and file a tax return with the relevant authority.

The Swiss tax system is based on taxpayers’ declarations with subsequent assessments being issued by the tax authorities based on the tax returns filed.

The tax return is used to assess the level of tax on income and wealth/capital of the taxpayer.

Who is Required to File a Tax Return in Switzerland ?

  • Swiss Companies

Swiss companies must file annual tax returns and financial statements (balance sheets, profit and loss accounts), with the tax office of the canton that the company is registered in.

Swiss Tax Return as a Company

The tax system for corporate income and capital taxes is based on taxpayers’ declarations, with subsequent assessments being issued by the tax authorities based on the tax returns filed.

Companies are initially assessed on a provisional basis, with final assessments being issued after the tax base was either the subject of a tax audit or declared final by the authorities.

Deadline

The tax return must be filed annually. An exemption exists in the first year of business when an extended business year can apply.

The filing deadlines vary from canton to canton but are usually between six and nine months, after the close of the business year.

Taxable Period

The tax year is the business year. Thus, the basis for corporate taxation is the applicable accounting period, which may end at any date within a calendar year.

Payment of Tax

Unless instalment payments are specifically requested, Swiss taxes are payable on receipt of a demand, based on a provisional or final assessment.

About one month before the due date, a provisional tax bill based on the latest tax return filed, or the assessment of the preceding period, is sent to the taxpayer.

Payment is usually made in three to ten instalments. If the entire amount is paid up front, a discount may be granted.

  • Individuals

Any individual who is over the age of 18 and has permanent or temporary residence or owns a property in Switzerland, is required to file a Swiss tax return, including anyone who is in education or training even if he/she receives little or no income.

Foreign nationals with a resident permit (Permit C), need to declare their income and assets by submitting the same tax return as Swiss citizens. Other foreign nationals are subject to wage tax withholdings on a monthly basis. The wage tax covers federal, cantonal, and municipal taxes.

If a non-resident individual owns property in Switzerland, they have to file a special tax return in the canton where the property is located.

Swiss Tax Return as an Individual

A single, income and assets tax return has to be completed and filed. One tax return is enough to enable the cantonal tax administration to assess the three different levels or types of tax to be paid.

Deadline

Tax returns for individuals have to be filed by 31 March of the following year, in the canton where the taxpayer was resident at the end of the respective tax period. Filing extensions are usually granted until September/November upon request.

Taxable Period

The official financial year in Switzerland begins in January and ends in December.

Tax Audit Process

Every tax return filed is reviewed and assessed by the tax authorities. In the course of this process, the tax authorities may ask for additional information and statements. A formal tax assessment is then issued, and if no legal action is taken, the tax assessment comes into legal force and final tax bills are issued.

Payment of Tax

Two to six months after the filing of the tax application, the taxpayer receives the tax bill including federal, cantonal and municipal taxes.

Cantonal and municipal taxes are usually collected on a provisional basis throughout the respective tax year. Cantonal rules differ but all include federal tax.

Taxes are paid to one single cantonal administration.

Final tax payments or tax refunds are due once the tax return has been finally assessed by the relevant tax authority.

Additional Information

The Dixcart Office in Switzerland can provide a detailed understanding of the Swiss System of Taxation and the obligations that need to be met.

Should you need further information or wish to discuss how to make your tax return, please do get in touch: advice.switzerland@dixcart.com.

Why Nevis is a Jurisdiction of Choice: to move to and to set up an Offshore Structure – In the Caribbean and Beyond

Posted on | by Hristina Georgieva

In this short article we cover some of the reasons why individuals and companies set up or move to Nevis. We will be looking at:

A Short Modern-Day History of Nevis

First things first, a question we often get asked when we embark on trips: Where is Nevis?

Nevis is the smaller of the 2 islands comprising the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis in the Caribbean. It is easily accessible with direct flights from London, Miami, Puerto Rico, Canada and New York, amongst others, to St Kitts. Followed by a short hop of four kilometres through The Narrows over to Nevis via water taxi. The population of Nevis is only 11,000 and that of St Kitts is 53,000.

Once you step off the water taxi and onto Nevis you are greeted by the warm air, sunshine on your back and will see the Nevis peak looming above you, an inactive volcano located in the centre of the island, which those more active visitors can choose to climb using tree roots and ropes to assist.

There is also a rich wildlife population with a higher concentration of Green Monkeys than people across the two islands, although they are considered to be pests as they demolish any hard grown crops. You will also see donkeys roaming freely around the island along with livestock such as goats and sheep. The sea life is not to be missed too where you may spot a stunning display of fish, sea turtles and different types of rays.

Nevis was the birthplace of Alexander Hamilton, one of the founding Fathers of America who was born on Nevis in 1757 and Lord Horatio Nelson, one of Britain’s most famous admirals, also used Nevis as a base of operations in the mid 1780’s and married a Nevisian, as the local people are known.

Nevis continued to be part of the British colonial holdings until 1967 when it achieved Associated Statehood with St. Kitts. In 1983, Nevis became part of an independent nation and formed part of the sovereign democratic state of St. Christopher and Nevis. It has the unique constitutional arrangement of being part of the Federal Parliament whilst having a separate parliament and its own Nevis Island Administration headed by a Premier.

Nevis Laws

The basis of the Federation’s law is the common law of England, but since independence it has been supplemented by newer legislation, specifically in the corporate, commercial and financial areas. The Nevis Trust law was originally based on a hybrid of the Guernsey Trust Law and Cook Islands Trust law, taking the best from each jurisdiction and has been subsequently refined, most recently in 2016.

The Federation’s Constitution provides sovereign rights to Nevis in that it can enact its own laws which are separate and distinct from those of St Kitts and the Federation. In 1984, Nevis established its international business sector with the enactment of the Nevis Business Corporation Ordinance. Subsequent to this international business in Nevis has grown steadily and now encompasses International Business Companies, Limited Liability Companies, Registered Trusts and Multiform Foundations. St Kitts and Nevis also offers a Citizenship By Investment Programme which enables people to invest into the Federation and receive a St Kitts and Nevis passport.

Dixcart Nevis Services

The office of Dixcart Management Nevis is located on the West of the island looking out over Gallows Bay.

picturesque view from our nevis office
(Snapshot from our office in Nevis)

We are proud to offer a friendly, bespoke, proactive and prompt service to our clients with our aim to respond to every query and question within 24 hours.

Our areas of expertise include:

  • Company formation and registered agent and registered office services
  • Migration of entities into Nevis from alternative jurisdictions
  • Estate Planning including Trust and Foundation creation and administration
  • Asset Protection
  • Citizenship by Investment Applications
  • Family Office Services

Why Set up a Structure in Nevis?

Nevis is fast becoming a preferred Caribbean jurisdiction to set up an offshore structure as it offers additional benefits not found elsewhere.

Structuring offshore can be utilised to mitigate taxes, to take advantage of asset protection laws, and succession planning. The benefits of Nevis are outlined in more detail as follows:

  • Increased Confidentiality – There is no beneficial ownership register in Nevis, public or private, or plan to introduce one and Ultimate Beneficial Owner information is kept confidential by the registered agent. Similarly there is no searchable register of Directors, as was recently introduced in BVI.
  • Asset Protection – Nevis trusts and foundations benefit from unique asset protection laws. If a creditor wishes to bring an action against one of these structures, they must first submit a bond of $100,000 for a Trust, or $50,000 for a Foundation, to the Nevis Minister of Finance before the court will consider the action. There is a 2 year statute of limitations period for trusts and 1 year for foundations, within which a creditor must bring an action, with all proceedings being held privately ‘in camera,’ (in the judge’s chambers).
  • An Additional Security Aspect – foreign judgements are not recognised, therefore even if a judgement has been awarded in another jurisdiction, any civil action must be brought anew in the Courts of the Federation.
  • Agility – There are agile structuring options; an entity formed in another jurisdiction may easily redomicile to Nevis including existing Trusts, Companies and Foundations, and not only can those entities migrate to Nevis, those existing entities can also be transformed into a Nevis Foundation to maintain continuity. 
  • Flexibility – With cutting edge and flexible foundation legislation, a Nevis Multiform Foundation can take or change its form to be a Trust Foundation, a Company Foundation, a Partnership Foundation or a Traditional Foundation and can ‘chop and change’ its form throughout its life to adjust dynamically to Client’s needs.
  • And finally, we Must Not Forget the Friendly Tax Environment – there is no income tax, capital gains tax, estate tax, inheritance tax or gift tax within Nevis. There is however a slight tax quirk for Nevis companies, more detail can be provided by contacting the Dixcart Nevis Team: advice.nevis@dixcart.com.

Why You Should Move to Nevis

Aside from the white sandy beaches, the warm and sunny climate and friendly people, Nevis boasts a number of delicious eateries, relaxed beach bars, a selection of schools and a full service hospital.

There are plenty of activities to take part in, these include; water sports, sailing, fishing, horseback riding, yoga, hiking and quad biking and there are regular events scheduled throughout the year including the Mango Festival, the annual Channel Swim between St Kitts and Nevis, ‘Culturama’, the Nevis Marathon, Nevis Triathlon and Annual Sea Turtle Experience.

Citizenship By Investment

The St Kitts and Nevis Citizenship By Investment Program is the longest running Caribbean program and has recently undergone some changes and announced some limited time benefits. See our recent article: (Enhanced Benefits St Kitts & Nevis Citizenship By Investment Programme: Limited Time Period) for details of these.

There are two main options to obtain a St Kitts and Nevis passport under this program, these are the donation route; donating a set sum, currently US$125,000, to the Government’s Sustainable Growth Fund, or the real estate route; by investing a minimum US$200,000 in an approved development or purchasing a private home for a minimum of US$400,000.

Happily Ever After – How Dixcart Can Help

So what are you waiting for? Contact us today to arrange a video call to discuss your options and hear why we love this Caribbean gem so much: advice.nevis@dixcart.com

Digital Finance of Today and What to Expect in the Near Future

Posted on | by Hristina Georgieva

Malta – Innovation and Technology

Malta is currently implementing a strategy to help ensure that Malta is considered as one of the top jurisdictions in the EU for innovation and technology. It is therefore important to be aware of what exactly the Digital Finance Market is made up of currently and where it is heading.

Malta is a prime locality for a Micro test-bed and there are currently several schemes that have been introduced to attract innovation and technology-based start-up companies.

The EU and the Digital Finance Sector

As early as September 2020, the European Commission adopted a digital finance package, including a digital finance strategy and legislative proposals on crypto-assets and digital operational resilience, to generate a competitive EU financial sector that gives consumers access to innovative financial products, while ensuring consumer protection and financial stability. The aim of having rules which are more digital-friendly and safe for consumers, is to leverage synergies between high innovative start-ups and established firms in the financial sector while addressing any associated risks.

Position of Regulators

The financial services sector has seen a rapid acceleration in the trend towards digitisation, and as a result, many regulators are navigating how to best ensure the regulatory framework manages the risks of these innovations, without impeding their potential to significantly enhance the financial system.

Market interest around crypto-assets, and the underlying distributed ledger technology (DLT), continues to grow. The potential benefits of these innovations is to increase payment efficiency as well as reducing cost and expanding financial inclusion. In doing so there also a list of associated concerns that many regulators have highlighted and they are stepping up warnings to consumers and investors.

In a shift away from traditional business models, big tech players are beginning to offer a variety of platform-based financial services. Artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques are being incorporated into firms’ processes and are increasingly being used in tools designed for use by customers. Regulators are also taking note of ethical concerns where AI models insufficiently consider data cleaning, transformation and anonymisation.

A Unified Approach

As firms lean on outsourcing to minimise costs and deliver innovative products, there is growing scrutiny on cyber resilience and third-party outsourcing, and various conferences are being held in order to merge regulators and innovators into one stream with a shared focus. Currently there a number of sandbox projects which encourage innovative start-ups to participate in creating transparency between product offering and regulation.

The fundamental building blocks underpinning all of the emerging technologies and digitisation, are infrastructure and data. Firms need to ensure that they have the expertise to store and analyse their databases and have in place adequate governance and controls. They need to protect confidential customer and market data, while delivering services more efficiently across borders. This raises legal challenges, which regulators continue to debate.

Digital Finance Strategy

The Digital Finance Strategy sets out a general European position on the digital transformation of financing in the coming years, while regulating its risks. While digital technologies are key for modernising the European economy across sectors, users of financial services must be protected against risks stemming from increased reliance on digital finance.

The Digital Finance Strategy sets out four main priorities that promote digital transformation:

  1. Tackles fragmentation in the Digital Single Market for financial services, thereby enabling European consumers to access cross-border services and help European financial firms’ scale up their digital operations.
  2. Ensures that the EU regulatory framework facilitates digital innovation in the interest of consumers and market efficiency.
  3. Creates a European financial data space to promote data-driven innovation, building on the European data strategy, including enhanced access to data and data sharing within the financial sector.
  4. Addresses new challenges and risks associated with digital transformation.

Banks should be aware that such a strategy will bring about expectations regarding the implementation of new technologies to deliver financial services, enhanced data sharing that leads to expected better offerings by firms and enhancements of skills to navigate in this new financial eco-system.

Particular initiatives which form part of the Digital Finance Strategy include:

  • Enabling EU-wide interoperable use of digital identities
  • Facilitating the scaling up of digital financial services across the Single Market
  • Promoting cooperation and the use of cloud computing infrastructures
  • Promoting the uptake of artificial intelligence tools
  • Promoting innovative IT tools to facilitate reporting and supervision

Digital Operational Resilience (DORA)

Part of the Digital Finance Package issued by the European Commission, the legislative proposal on digital operational resilience (DORA proposal), augments existing Information and Communications Technology (ICT) risk requirements, enabling an IT landscape which is expected to be safe and fit for the future. The proposal tackles various elements and includes; ICT risk management requirements, ICT-related incident reporting, digital operational resilience testing, ICT third-party risk and information sharing.

The proposal aims to address; fragmentation regarding the obligations of financial entities in the area of ICT risk, inconsistencies in incident reporting requirements within and across financial services sectors as well as the threat of information sharing, limited and uncoordinated digital operational resilience testing, and the increasing relevance of ICT third party risk.

Financial entities are expected to maintain resilient ICT systems and tools that minimise ICT risk with effective business continuity policies in place.  Institutions are also required to have processes to monitor, classify and report major ICT-related incidents, with the ability to periodically test the system’s operational resilience.  ICT third party risk is given greater emphasis, with critical ICT third-party service providers subject to a Union Oversight Framework.

In the context of the proposal, banks are expected to undertake a holistic exercise, assessing their ICT framework and plan for the expected changes. The Authority emphasises that banks should continuously monitor all sources of ICT risk whilst having adequate protection and prevention measures in place. Finally, banks should build the necessary expertise and have adequate resources to be compliant with requirements emanating from such proposals.

Retail Payments Strategy

The Digital Finance Package also includes a dedicated Retail Payments Strategy.  This strategy encompasses a new medium-to-long term policy framework that aims to enhance the development of retail payments within the evolving digital world. The four pillars of this strategy are;

  1. increasing digital and instant payment solutions with pan-European reach;
  2. innovative and competitive retail payment markets;
  3. efficient and interoperable retail payment systems and other support infrastructures; and
  4. efficient international payments, including remittances.

This strategy aims to broaden the acceptance network for digital payments, with the Commission also supporting the work towards the issuing of a digital euro.  In addition, the Commission wants to ensure that the surrounding legal framework regarding payments, covers all of the important players, with a high degree of consumer protection in place. 

How Can Dixcart Malta Help?

Dixcart Malta has a wealth of experience across financial services, and can provide a legal and regulatory compliance insight and help to implement transformational, technology and organisational change. 

When launching new innovative products and services, the experience of Dixcart Malta can help clients adapt to changing regulatory requirements and recognise and manage emerging risks.

We also identify and assist our clients in accessing various Malta government schemes, including grants and soft loans. 

Additional Information

For further information about Digital Finance and the approach taken in Malta, please contact Jonathan Vassallo, at the Dixcart office in Malta: advice.malta@dixcart.com.

Alternatively, please speak to your usual Dixcart contact.