Fintech
Malta is a Mediterranean EU state that has taken advantage of its small size and agile legislative process to develop the first legislative infrastructure explicitly tailored, rather than adapted, to the DLT sector in the widest scope possible. In tribute to Malta’s eager adoption of DLT, including the first bespoke DLT legislation, this innovative jurisdiction has won the title of “Blockchain Island”. It is well on its way to becoming a leading global hub in this sector.
Zeta brings together a team combining highly experienced financial services professionals with several Malta’s more prominent researchers and pioneers in Distributed Ledger Technologies (DLT). Zeta itself is one of the first few companies in Malta to explore operations in the DLT and the Fintech sector.
Malta’s legislative framework, launched in 2018, comprises three laws – the Malta Digital Innovation Act, which sets up a regulatory authority to promote digital innovation, as well as to certify innovative technology arrangements and services. The Innovative Technology Arrangements and Services Act provides for a certification regime for any technology arrangement such as a DLT platform or service by means of the Malta Digital Innovation Authority. This reasoning for this certification is to ensure that any arrangement or service provider wishing to offer added security and peace of mind to users/clients can make use of the provisions provided by the Innovative Technology Arrangement and Services Act.
The third law is the Virtual Financial Assets Act, and it is regulated by Malta’s financial services regulator, the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA). The basic approach of this law is to regulate virtual financial assets (VFAs) that do not fall under existing laws. DLT assets that fall under this act are those that are neither virtual tokens nor financial instruments nor electronic money. All such are either unregulated (virtual tokens) or regulated by existing legislation. If a DLT asset does not fall under one of these three categories, then it is considered a VFA for this law and is regulated by this law.