FINANCEMALTA'S CHAIRMAN IS THE FRONT MAN FOR SEVENTY OFFSHORE CORPORATIONS, ACCORDING TO THE PARADISE PAPERS

 

This week's FinanceMalta three-day conference, entitled Innovation in Financial Services, is discussing the challenges Malta is facing in 2020, many of whom we have been discussing on this blog, and all of which deserve immediate attention. We hope that positive results will come out of the program.

I must confess that I am bothered by the practice of the owners of offshore companies hiring nominee officers and directors, or even shareholders, as front men, whilst they hide in the shadows. Given that these local Maltese receive a fee for their "services" they are the last to act as whistle blowers in the event they discover that the beneficial owners, who are their employers, are engaged in money laundering, other types of financial crimes, or even terrorist financing. They know that if they speak up, the gravy train of fees will come to an abrupt halt.

 

For example, the Chairman of FinanceMalta, Rudolph Psaila, who addressed the conference at length, and who championed innovation and reputation, shows up in the ICIJ Paradise Papers, as the designated Secretary of seventy (70) offshore corporations. Obviously, he cannot adequately supervise and monitor seventy companies that he is a principal officer of, so who is the gatekeeper on behalf of the the people of Malta, and its laws and regulations ? How in earth can he even find the time to attend corporate meetings, and record the minutes of said meetings ?  Who's watching all these companies, Rudolph? You are an officer at so many companies, we cannot fit them all on this article.

To make matters worse, his close relationship with former Pilatus Bank director, Armin Eckermann, who is rumored to being imminently charged with a number of crimes, for personally approving all of Pilatus' money laundering clients, may disqualify Psaila from any officer or director position in any Malta company. 

Perhaps FinanceMalta should think about naming a new Chairman, in the true spirit of reputation restoration.