MGA publishes H1 report

The Malta Gaming Authority has published its Interim Performance Report for H1 2023.

Malta.- The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) published its H1 Interim Performance Report. It reported that the Maltese gambling sector’s gross added value (GAV) to the Maltese economy for the six months stood at €810.7m. That’s a rise of 1.1 per cent year-on-year and represents 9.5 per cent of Malta’s overall GAV.

The Maltese regulator reports that it completed 14 compliance audits in the period, undertook 85 desktop reviews and issued nine administrative penalties totalling €124,400. Some 11 Compliance Examinations were conducted for the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU). The FIAU issued administrative penalties totalling €599,420 to three licensees due to breaches detected in previous years.

The MGA also reported that it assisted 2,216 players who asked for its help and conducted 40 responsible gambling checks of websites. It sent out 16 observation letters noting areas for possible improvement. The regulator received 16 applications for licences and issued seven. Eight applications were rejected or withdrawn by the applicants.

The MGA also highlighted its collaboration with regulators in other jurisdictions. It said had received 12 requests for information in the six months and had participated in 17 data exchanges. It also received 166 allegations of suspicious activity. It received 37 requests for collaboration from international regulators and sent out 23 such requests itself.

Last week, the MGA announced that Charles Mizzi will be its new chief executive. Mizzi will take up the role on January 26. The MGA had confirmed in October that current CEO Carl Brincat would not seek another term. He replaced Heathcliff Farrugia in January 2021.

Mizzi has served as CEO of the Residency Malta Agency, the government body responsible for managing the Malta Permanent Residence Programme. Other roles have included a stint as head of image and communications at BNF Bank.