The app was designed after receiving feedback from the public and realising that businesses’ reported difficulties in making sense of the overwhelming and disjointed amount of information from many different sources on support and incentives available to them.

The app aims to be a practical and streamlined platform that can help local businesses rifle through the available collection of schemes and other incentives available from all government organisations.

Support measures available through the app are grouped based on the type of funding mechanism and are further categorised by the sectors they target.

Each page relating to a particular incentive provides basic information about the scheme, with direct links to more detailed information along with contact details pertaining to the entity managing each initiative.

The mobile app entitled Enterprise Incentives is available on Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store.

Malta SME Week kicks off with StartUp Café

The Malta SME Week is also taking place now. Mr Cardona’s launch of the week-long event series, as well as the app, was announced at the second edition of Malta Enterprise’s StartUp Café. During this event, Malta Enterprise said it has supported startups with €2m since 2015.

The Malta SME Week is part of the European Commission’s EU-wide SME Week events, which aim to generate public awareness among people who wish to start a business or are already in business and wish to grow their activities. The event series lasts for six weeks. This year’s edition is featuring a wide range of events targeting different audiences.

The SME Week in Malta ties with the economy ministry’s efforts to promote entrepreneurship as a career option while providing information on national and EU entities assistance to micro, small and medium-sized businesses and also giving recognition to entrepreneurs for their contribution to Malta’s welfare, jobs, innovation, and competitiveness, according to the DOI press release.

“October has become synonymous for the local business community with events that bring us and the relevant stakeholders all together, where we update each other on local and European trends. It’s also an opportunity for us to have a better idea of what challenges and realities our businesses are facing,” said economy minister Mr Cardona.

The StartUp Café brought together some 120 young enterprises looking to start their own business. During the event, professionals and academics shared their experiences in order to help participants to develop their entrepreneurial skills. In addition, participants participated in workshops and networking sessions with the panellists.

The post Mobile app aims to assist businesses in Malta first appeared on The Malta Business Weekly.

HSBC says its new app helps to streamline money transfers and also supports biometric login, such as Touch ID and Face ID for Apple and Fingerprint ID for compatible Android devices. Alternatively, users can use a six-digit PIN for logging in.

“We have decided to link the launch of our new app to an important local initiative which will see us donate up to €20,000 to Nature Trust Malta. In this way, anyone who downloads and uses the new app will also be supporting the environment,” said Dan Robinson, Head of Retail Banking and Wealth Management.

The mobile app uses up-to-date encryption technology, and allows users to view account details and balances, see their transfer history, as well as can transfer between their own accounts, pay a third-party account with HSBC Malta, pay a third-party account within the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) and also make payments to companies.

Nevertheless, for third-party transactions, the payees must first be set up through the bank’s personal internet banking platform.

The post HSBC Malta to donate up to €20,000 for planting trees first appeared on The Malta Business Weekly.

The service is available every day between 05:30 and 22:30 on the so-called TD Plus bus. It operates at a limited number of bus stops to be able to offer customers a shorter journey time. These stops are in the following localities: Valletta, Floriana, Pietà, Blata l-Bajda, Msida, San Ġwann, St. Julian’s, Swieqi and Pembroke.

TD Plus allows clients to choose when and where to be picked up from and dropped off. Therefore individuals can book a trip between bus stops without worrying about whether there is space in the bus. Moreover, notifications are sent to alert app users that the bus is on its way.

Every customer has the possibility to book multiple passengers on a single trip and request access for wheelchairs or pushchairs.

The TD Plus fleet includes six new minibuses, which are low floor and fully wheelchair accessible. WiFi is available at no additional cost and seats are equipped with USB charging ports. The minibuses can accommodate up to 16 passengers, according to the press statement.

New tech system

The updated Tallinja app can be downloaded for free from the iPhone App Store and Android Google Play Store. Once in the app, the new service is available by tapping on the TD plus icon.

To provide this service, Malta Public Transport has partnered with Ecolane, an on-demand scheduling and dispatching software company.

In fact, TD Plus uses technology that matches the requests made by different passengers to select the most efficient route. It offers greater flexibility, more comfort and added value while saving time, the service provider says.

During the month of June — as a special introductory offer — the service will be available at €2 per trip when the customer books through the Tallinja App, as the press statement says. The two payment options are Tallinja Card credit or debit/credit card.

The post Malta Public Transport launches new TD Plus service first appeared on The Malta Business Weekly.