Joseph Zammit Tabona, Chair of Malta Financial Services Advisory Council: “The FinanceMalta Conference represents a unique opportunity to understand Malta's strategic evolution as a financial services

Ahead of the FinanceMalta Conference, where spotlight sessions will explore critical developments shaping Malta's financial services sector, Joseph Zammit Tabona discusses three key initiatives that will be presented by expert speakers: Conrad Cassar Torregiani on family offices and regulatory evolution, Ian Gauci on Malta's AI in Fintech Strategy, and Nicholas Valenza on aircraft leasing opportunities.

Conrad Cassar Torregiani will be leading a spotlight session on "Family Offices: Navigating a Shifting Regulatory Landscape" at the FinanceMalta Conference. What makes Malta's framework particularly attractive for Single Family Offices in today's environment, and what can conference attendees expect to learn from his session?

Conrad's upcoming session comes at an opportune moment, as we've just completed a comprehensive program to position Malta as a centre of excellence for Single Family Offices. The global family office market is experiencing remarkable growth from approximately 8,000 to 11,000 offices worldwide in 2025, managing between USD 3.1 trillion and USD 4.67 trillion in assets. By 2035, we expect to see over 13,000 family offices globally with assets surpassing USD 7 trillion. Malta is strategically positioned to capture a meaningful share of this growth, particularly within the EMEA region, which currently holds 52% of global family office assets.

Under our working group at MFSAC, we've refined our regulatory framework in close collaboration with the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) and the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU) to ensure it suits the specificities of single-family offices. Conrad will go into more detail during his session  on why Malta has become an increasingly attractive jurisdiction for family offices seeking regulatory clarity in a shifting global landscape.

Ian Gauci's spotlight session will address "AI: Malta's AI in Fintech Strategy." How is this strategy positioning Malta for the future of financial services, and why will this discussion be timely for conference attendees?

Ian's presentation will address one of the most transformative forces in financial services today; AI. In Malta, we recognise that as a competitive jurisdiction, we cannot only accommodate AI but need to actively facilitate responsible deployment through a usable, trustworthy and aligned framework.

While Malta already has a National AI Strategy, the Financial Services Strategy 2023 did not explicitly address AI's swift acceleration. This is why MFSAC decided to create a dedicated AI in Fintech Strategy to ensure we are adapting regulations and fostering AI-driven business models. As Ian will discuss, our overall goal through this workstream which intersects across all the verticals, is to make complex regulation usable, ensure responsible innovation, and emerge as the most implementable and coordinated EU jurisdiction for AI in fintech.

Nicholas Valenza will be presenting on aircraft leasing at the conference. What progress has the MFSAC made in establishing Malta as a competitive jurisdiction in this substantial market, and what will his session reveal about Malta's positioning?

Nicholas's presentation will showcase one of Malta's most exciting sectoral opportunities. We're targeting a global market valued at approximately USD 213 billion in 2025, projected to grow to between USD 550 billion and USD 592 billion by 2035. Looking further ahead, approximately 18,000 to 20,000 new aircraft worth around USD 3 trillion could potentially be leased over the next two decades. Malta brings significant advantages through our robust aviation ecosystem, including Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facilities, Aircraft Registration services, and flight training capabilities.

When Nicholas takes the stage at the conference, attendees will gain detailed insights into how Malta will continue supporting aircraft leasing operations and why Malta is emerging as a leading European hub for this dynamic sector.

Why would you encourage financial services professionals to attend the FinanceMalta Conference this year?

The FinanceMalta Conference represents a unique opportunity to understand Malta's strategic evolution as a financial services jurisdiction at a pivotal moment. These spotlight sessions on family offices, AI in fintech, and aircraft leasing aren't simply academic discussions—they represent completed frameworks and active strategies that are now ready for market. Whether you're a wealth manager exploring jurisdictions for family office structures, a fintech innovator seeking a supportive regulatory environment for AI deployment, or an aviation finance professional evaluating new markets, this conference will provide direct access to the architects of Malta's regulatory frameworks and the practical insights needed to make informed decisions.