The Malta Financial Services Authority’s recent consultation on Decentralised Finance comes at a time when the digital assets market is becoming more serious, more regulated and more connected to traditional finance. Crypto is no longer only a s
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In June 2025, the Malta Financial Services Authority (“MFSA”) issued a position paper examining an innovative application of distributed ledger technology (“DLT”) within the investment funds industry, which included the possibility of usin
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The European Commission (the “Commission”) has adopted two important updates under the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (“MiCA”). Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/1125 (the “Delegated Regulation”) and Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025
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The Malta Financial Services Authority (“MFSA”) has issued a position paper setting out its stance on the tokenisation of fund units within Collective Investment Schemes (“CIS”). This initiative aligns with the EU’s broader efforts to re
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We would like to extend our sincere thanks to Swissquote, Integra Private Wealth Management, and Invesco for inviting our team to the Financial Horizons 2025 conference. It was a privilege to attend this insightful event, where we gained valuable
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The financial sector is undergoing rapid transformation driven by FinTech innovations, which are reshaping traditional practices and introducing new ways of conducting business. Among these groundbreaking technologies, smart contracts have emerged
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The Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU) has initiated a consultation on the revision of the Implementing Procedures – Part II for the Virtual Financial Assets (VFA) Sector. This consultation is an essential part of ongoing efforts to str
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The Draft Regulatory Technical Standards (“RTS”) for adjusting own funds requirements, focus on issuers of significant asset-referenced tokens (“ARTs”) and e-money tokens, introduced by the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (“MiCA”).
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The Digital Operational Resilience Act (“DORA”) and the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (“MiFID II”) are two significant components of the EU’s regulatory landscape aimed at ensuring financial market stability, transparenc
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On the 29th of February the European Securities and Markets Authority (“ESMA”) issued a consultation paper to address the reverse solicitation provisions under the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (“MiCA”). ESMA aimed to provide clarity
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On the 29th June 2020, the European Securities and Markets Authority (“ESMA”) published its reply to the Commission’s consultation on a Digital Finance Strategy for Europe. The transformation of the financial sector taking a digitised form a
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The UK Financial Conduct Authority ("FCA") has recently published its ‘Guidance on Cryptoassets – Feedback and Final Guidance to Consultation Paper CP 19/3 (the "Guidance"). The Policy Statement followed the ‘Guidance
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The European Central Bank ("ECB")has recently issued an Occasional Paper entitled "In search for stability in crypto-assets: are stablecoins the solution?" (the "Paper"). The Paper provides a description of stablecoin
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On the 19th of July 2019 the Malta Financial Services Authority (the “MFSA”) issued a Consultation Document on Security Token Offering (the “Consultation”). This Consultation forms part of the Capital Markets Strategy, Pillar II – Revisi
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As of the 21st of July 2019, Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 (the “Prospectus Regulation”) came fully into effect and is directly applicable in all EU member states. The Prospectus Regulation facilitates the so-called prospectus obligation and the i
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The European Securities and Markets Authority (“ESMA”) has recently published a document containing a list of thresholds below which an offer of securities would not need a prospectus. This list aims to create transparency around the different
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The European Securities and Markets Authority (“ESMA”) has issued three Questions and Answers (“Q&As”) regarding the Prospectus Directive (“PD”) and the Transparency Directive (“TD”). Background Overview The PD The PD harmonise
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ESMA’s Advice to the EU Institutions on ICOs and crypto-assets The European Securities and Markets Authority (“ESMA”) has recently published its Advice to the European Union (EU) Institutions on initial coin offerings and crypto asse
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The Office of Commissioner for Revenue has recently issued three guidelines relating to the taxation of transactions involving Distributed Ledger Technology Assets (“DLT Assets”). The guidelines provide insight on the Commissioner’s position
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In light of the coming into force of the Virtual Financial Assets Act (“VFA Act”), the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (“FIAU”) has published a consultation document on the application of the anti-money laundering (“AML”) obligati
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he Malta Financial Services Authority (“MFSA”) has published a circular clarifying as to when derivative contracts should be considered as financial instruments, and that companies trading in such transactions will have to either provide a rep
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Three years after the EU adopted the Digital Single Market Strategy, progress has been made, with 12 legislative proposals out of 29 being agreed by the European Parliament and the Council. Major new laws such as the GDPR and the end of mobile roa
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We are one step closer to have a fully fledged legal framework regulating DLT and cryptocurrencies since yesterday the draft bills have been made available to the public. Parliament has scheduled the second reading today which will be followed by
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It has become a well-known fact that Malta is aiming to be a leader in regulating Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), cryptocurrencies and ICOs. In fact, three new laws regulating this area have been proposed and presented to the Parliament and
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The MFSA has today issued its Consultation Paper on the Financial Instrument Test. The Financial Instrument Test is a very important process in determining whether a token falls within the definition of ‘financial instrument’ under the Markets
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Malta’s Prime Minister Dr. Joseph Muscat claimed that Malta is aiming to be “the global trailblazer in the regulation of blockchain-based businesses and the jurisdiction of quality and choice for world class fintech companies.” Such statemen
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The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) has published the details of a sandbox which will allow the use of Virtual Currencies (VC) and the use of Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) in the gaming sector. The sandbox will start in Q2 of 2018 and will last
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Apart from providing for the establishment of a new central authority (the “MDIA”), the MDIA Bill also outlines the minimum governance arrangements of the MDIA and its overall objectives and policies. Composition and Governance Arrangements
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In its efforts to regulate blockchain, virtual currencies and innovation through the Consultation Document, Malta is proposing the establishment of a new central authority, a new Joint Co-ordination Board and a National Technology Ethics Committe
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The Maltese Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services, Digital Economy and Innovation published a Consultation Document on the establishment of a central authority responsible for digital innovation in Malta, on the certification of Distribut
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If you are interested in the field of blockchain and cryptocurrencies, you should not miss the Blockchain & Bitcoin Conference Malta which will be held in Malta on the 7th of December. Entrepreneurs, investors, consultants and IT specialists
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