Last Updated on Tuesday, 21 July, 2020 at 9:44 am by Andre Camilleri
Malta’s financial services industry offers significant, diverse and varied career paths and opportunities, especially for young people and individuals with different backgrounds. While the industry already employs over 12,000 people in Malta, the need for skilled human resources is still on the increase.
“Career Paths and Opportunities in Malta’s Financial Services Industry” was the theme discussed during the second in a series of free interactive webinars organised by FinanceMalta to support the sector in the post-COVID-19 recovery period.
The theme of the webinar was in line with one of FinanceMalta’s strategic objectives for 2020, namely inclusivity and the ability to attract young people to the sector. In fact, FinanceMalta’s Chairman Rudolph Psaila underlined the variety and extent of opportunities available in financial services in his welcome address that opened the webinar.
Mr Psaila also stressed that, apart from studying at University or MCAST, individuals can also enrol in one of the various training institutions on the island or get employed by a financial services company which provides regular and ongoing training and qualifications. FinanceMalta’s Chairman also said that the industry is not only in need of the well-known areas of accounting, law, audit and tax, but there are some roles in very high demand, as it is the case for fund administration, IT, marketing, Money Laundering Report Officers and support staff, amongst others.
“We can see a trend in financial services companies which allows for good career progression. The sky is the limit for high performers and career progression can be faster than one might think” he said.
The webinar featured two guest speakers, namely Mirko Rapa – Chairperson of the Education sub-committee of the IFSP, and Melanie Pace – Senior Manager (People and Culture) at MFSA.
Mr Rapa gave an overview of the diverse job opportunities in the industry and explained the role of a financial services practitioner. He said that technical and functional skills, business and life skills, as well as experience are the three key areas required to be a professional in the financial services industry.
Mr Rapa explained that the technical and functional skills cover, amongst others, banking, investments, insurance, marketing, technology, accountancy and law. He emphasised the significance of work-life balance, as well as the importance of a constant learning environment, as part of the experience of working in this industry. He also underlined the international dimension that a career in the industry offers, with practitioners often undertaking overseas assignments to broaden their experience.
Melanie Pace focused her presentation on the regulator’s vision and expected growth in the financial services field. She outlined MFSA’s vision of being a leading, forward-looking financial services regulator, which has the respect and trust of the industry and the general public, whilst contributing towards a strong and dynamic financial sector.
Ms Pace said that in the last years, the MFSA has increased its human resources and now employs 420 people and the plan is to go up to 445 by the end of the year. She also stressed that this is a period of exceptional growth and that the regulator offers equal opportunities, international exposure, a learning experience and work-life balance – with the added benefit of working in a multinational and multicultural environment.
The webinar included also a video recently published by FinanceMalta as part of its #FMReachOut campaign to increase its digital presence and visibility. In the video Ronald Attard, Country Managing Partner at EY, speaks about his personal experience and says that deciding to start a career in the financial services industry could end up being one of the best decisions of one’s life.
The webinar was facilitated by Andrea Nurchi – FinanceMalta’s Senior Manager of Business Development and included a Q&A session with the speakers. The questions covered various aspects including ways of keeping abreast with the latest developments in the industry, the importance of persevering when seeking to start a career in financial services especially in a post-COVID-19 world, and the opportunities of working in summer with financial services companies whilst continuing studies throughout the year.
The recording of the webinar is available on the FinanceMalta website, via this link: https://financemalta.org/news/career-paths-and-opportunities-in-maltas-financial-services-industry-video-presentations/ FinanceMalta is the public-private initiative set up to promote Malta as an International Financial Centre.
