Malta, a reputable financial services centre, is slowly and steadily climbing the ladder in becoming a hub for the establishment of EMIs.
Why set up an EMI in Malta?
A pro-business regulator and a stable macro-economic environment
English is an official language
A serious yet approachable regulator, the Malta Financial Services Authority
A robust regulatory regime
An extensive double tax treaty network
State of the art telecommunications infrastructure
A multilingual, efficient and increasingly specialised workforce
A gateway to Europe, North Africa and the Middle East
Competitive regulatory fees and operational costs
An EMI is “a financial institution that has been licensed in accordance with the Financial Institutions Act and authorised to issue electronic money, or that holds an equivalent authorisation in another country in terms of the Electronic Money Directive to issue electronic money” as defined in the Third Schedule of Financial Institutions Act.
Electronic Money is in turn defined as “electronically, including magnetically, stored monetary value as represented by a claim on the issuer which is issued on receipt of funds for the purpose of making payment transactions … and which is accepted by a natural or legal person other than the financial institutions that issued the electronic money”.
Once the licensing process is complete and authorization from the MFSA has been granted, an EMI may also carry out the following auxiliary activities, in addition to its primary activity of issuing electronic money:
the provision of certain payment services;
the granting of credit related to certain payment services. Provided that any such credit shall not be granted from the funds received in exchange for electronic money and held in accordance with the prescribed safeguarding requirements;
the provision of operational services and closely related ancillary services in respect of the issuing of electronic money or the provision of payment services referred to in the first point above;
the operation of payment systems;
business activities other than the issuance of electronic money, having regard to the applicable law regulating such activities.
The minimum initial capital necessary to begin the licencing process is €350,000. A licensed EMI is also obliged to ensure that its own funds may not fall below this amount of initial capital.
Passport of Licence
Of major importance is that once the relative licence is obtained in Malta, an EMI benefits from the right to passport its licence into other EU Member States by following simple notification procedures. This means that the licence enables the EMI to provide its services within other Member States and/or EEA States. They can do so either through the establishment of a branch or remotely, under the freedom to provide services.
EMD
As a multi-disciplinary firm in Malta, EMD can assist with the setting up of an EMI in Malta, the licencing procedure and compliance thereafter as well as the passporting notification procedure. With an experienced team of professionals and optimum relations with the local authorities, we can ensure an efficient process. EMD’s membership of the Delphi Alliance positions it on an international platform allowing it to showcase its services, and the investment opportunities Malta offers, on a global level.
EMD Advocates is a part of EMD, a multi-disciplinary full-service firm based in Malta, providing legal, tax, advisory and corporate services. EMD Advocates has a strong international legal practice particularly in corporate and commercial law, contractual law, financial services, iGaming law, tax law, trust law, employment law, immigration and citizenship, intellectual property, aviation & aircraft registration, ship & yacht registration, employment law, media & entertainment law, civil law and property and construction law.
EMD is a proud member of Delphi Alliance in Malta.
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