PETER J BALDACCHINO Head, Strategy at the Department of Accountancy, University of Malta Peter J Baldacchino is Head of Department and Senior Lecturer Auditing and Financial Strategy at the Department of Accountancy, University of Malta. He is a Chartered Certified Accountant and is a research postgraduate of Loughborough Business School. His academic research interests and publications in refereed journals have a small-state perspective and mostly focus on internal and external auditing, its regulation and relationship to corporate governance and financial strategy. Mr Baldacchino is also a member of the Maltese Accountancy Board, and of its Quality Assurance Oversight Committee. Furthermore, he has extensive experience in the financial reporting, internal auditing and governance and directorship of Maltese banks, telecommunication companies and co-operatives. At present he also holds positions as Director of a Group of companies while past positions included that of Chairman of Group Audit and Risk Management Committees. E-mail address: peter.j.baldacchino@um.edu.mt
CHRISTINE BALZAN, Senior Economist, Central Bank of Malta Ms. Christine Balzan is currently employed as a senior Economist with the Central Bank of Malta and works in the Financial Stability Department. Her main duties include the construction and calibration of risk models as well as stress testing models. She attained her Masters Degree in Economics at the University of Malta.
GEOFFREY BEZZINA Director, Consumer Complaints Unit, Malta Financial Services Authority Geoffrey Bezzina is Director, Consumer Complaints Unit at the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA). He is also the Authority s Consumer Complaints Manager. The law gives the Complaints Manager the function to investigate complaints on financial services transactions from private customers. The Consumer Complaints Unit is also responsible for the provision of consumer education and information about financial services and to answer queries from the public on financial services in general. Mr Bezzina has been an official of the MFSA (then Malta Financial Services Centre) since September 1995. He has edited and co-ordinated the Authority s publications aimed towards educating the consumer on various aspects of financial services. He is also a frequent guest on local radio and TV stations. He is also the secretary of the Compensation Schemes Management Committee responsible for the management and administration of the Investor Compensation and the Depositor Compensation Schemes in Malta, and the secretary of the Protection and Compensation Fund Management Committee, an insurance guarantee fund.
MIGUEL BORG Executive Head, Risk Management, Bank of Valletta Group, University of Malta Miguel Borg occupies the position of Executive Head Risk Management at the Bank of Valletta Group. He is responsible for the implementation of the enterprise risk management framework and for the management of the main material risks within the Group. Previously, he occupied the position of Group Risk Consultant with the Bank. Prior to his employment in the private sector, he was employed with the Financial Stability Office at the Central Bank of Malta. His responsibilities included macro stress testing, quantitative risk modelling, liquidity risk management and banking regulation.
MALCOLM BRAY Manager, Financial Stability, Surveillance, Assessment and Data Office Central Bank of Malta Mr Malcolm Bray graduated in economics and banking & finance from the University of Malta and read for a Master of Science in Economics at the University of York (UK). His main areas of interest are macroeconomic analysis and business intelligence. Mr Bray joined the Central Bank of Malta in 1999. He worked as senior economist, where his main responsibilities included drafting economic reports, building econometric models and producing forecasts. In 2009 he was appointed as manager within the financial stability department, responsible for the surveillance and assessment of systemic risks. Mr Bray has been a member of a number of working groups within the European System of Central Banks. He is currently a member of the Analysis Working Group which reports to the European Systemic Risk Board.
LINO BRIGUGLIO Director, Islands and Small States Institute, University of Malta Professor Lino Briguglio (born January 1944) possesses a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Exeter (UK) and a Special Diploma in Social Studies from the University of Oxford. He obtained his Honours and Master's degree in Economics from the University of Malta. He was formerly head of the Economics Department and of the Banking and Finance Department of the University of Malta. He currently directs the Islands and Small States Institute and the Gozo Centre of the University of Malta. His main area of interest is islands and small states studies, in particular economic aspects, and he has authored many publications on this subject. He is known internationally for his seminal work on the "Vulnerability Index" (see for example World Development, Sept 1995) which led to a world-wide interest and to many quantitative studies on Economic and Environmental Vulnerability. Professor Briguglio also has a keen interest in competition economics. He is currently a member of the Appeals Tribunal for Competition and Consumer Affairs, which is a judiciary panel appointed by the Government of Malta. Professor Briguglio is editor of Bank of Valletta Review published by the Bank of Valletta and also serves on the editorial boards of a number of other journals. For a time he was the general editor of the Islands Series published by Cassell-Pinter, London. Professor Briguglio has acted as consultant to several international organisations including the UN Department of Policy Coordination, UNCTAD, UNDP, UNEP, CARICOM, the Commonwealth Secretariat and SOPAC. He has also represented the Maltese government in many United Nations meetings, including the UN Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island States and the World Summit for Sustainable Development. Prof. Briguglio is one of the lead authors for the chapter on Small Island States of the Fifth Assessment Reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Currently Professor Briguglio is a member of the Malta Climate Change Consultative
CHRISTIAN CAMILLERI Head, Credit Risk Management Unit, Bank of Valletta plc Christian Camilleri is a graduate in Banking and Finance from the University of Malta.Christian has furthered his studies in accountancy, and is an ACCA and MIA member. Mr Camilleri, joined Bank of Valletta's Finance Unit in 1997, where he was mainly responsible for the Statutory Reporting functions. He later joined Risk Unit where he was responsible for the setting up of the Bank's Asset Liability Function, of which he is Head. Christian also serves as secretary to the bank's ALCO committee.
SILVIO CAMILLERI Lecturer, University of Malta Dr. Silvio John Camilleri studied Banking and Finance at the University of Malta and subsequently with the University of London from where he obtained a Masters Degree in Financial Management. He completed his PhD programme at the Economics Department of Loughborough University, where he conducted empirical research on the microstructure of emerging securities markets. Dr. Camilleri lectures at the Banking and Finance Department of the University of Malta and has published research in journals and scholarly collections. He also worked at the Group Treasury Department of Air Malta Company Ltd., where he was a member of the Investments Committee.
GORDON CORDINA Lecturer, University of Malta Dr Gordon Cordina holds the post of Resources Economics at the University of Malta. His main area of research interest is the growth and macroeconomic dynamics of small and micro economies. He has published widely in this area, on aspects ranging from macroeconomic and growth patterns to pension reform to environmental sustainability. Dr Cordina has served as Director General of the National Statistics Office, as Economic Advisor to the Malta Council for Economic and Social Development and as Head of the Research Department of the Central Bank of Malta. He has been involved in a number of local and international research projects and consultancy assignments with institutions including the EU Commission, various Government Ministries and private sector institutions.
ANTHONY P CORTIS Director, Statistics & Risk Management Directorate, Central Bank of Malta, Mr. Cortis joined the Central Bank of Malta in 1975. He is currently the Director of the Statistics & Risk Management Directorate at the Central Bank of Malta, responsible for the Statistics Department and the development of the Bank s strategy, policies and risk management. He worked within various departments in the Bank, including as the Senior Dealer in the treasury and investment office of the Bank and as Manager in the Banking Supervision Office. From 2004 to 2011 he headed the Financial Stability Department of the Bank. Mr Cortis is a member of the Policy Advisory Committee. In his previous role as Head of Financial Stability Department, he represented the Bank in the Standing Committee established between the Central Bank of Malta and the Malta Financial Services Authority; in the Domestic Working Group for Co-operation in the Management of Financial Crises as well as Secretary to the Bank s Financial Stability Committee. He was also the Bank s representative at the European Banking Authority and in the ESRB s Instruments Working Group. He also served as a member of the ESCB Working Group on Developments in Banking, the Task Force on Crisis Management and in the Working Group on Macro-prudential Analysis. Mr Cortis has a first degree in Banking.
DAVID FABRI Head, of the Legal and International Affairs Unit, Malta Financial Services Authority David Fabri graduated in law in 1979. In 1992, after ten years working with a leading audit firm, he joined the Malta International Business Authority, now known as the Malta Financial Services Authority, where he heads the legal and international affairs unit and serves as Secretary to the Board of Governors. He is currently the Head of the Commercial Law Department at the University of Malta and the co-ordinator of the Masters in Financial Services course. He lectures and writes regularly on consumer protection, financial services and corporate law subjects. Since 1991, he has been closely involved in drawing up of policy and legislative measures in these areas, including the local transposition of many EC Directives.
KAROL GABARRETTA Director, Banking Unit, Malta Financial Services Authority Karol currently holds the position of Director heading the Banking Supervision Unit within the MFSA. He joined the MFSA in 2002 following a 23-year stint with the Central Bank of Malta, where he worked in several divisions including Economics and Research, Banking Regulation, and Financial Stability. Karol holds a Bachelor s degree in Economics and a post-graduate degree in Financial Services from the University of Malta, and has made various contributions on inter alia prudential controls, financial stability, capital adequacy, the local banking regulatory and supervisory system and issues arising from Basel II, III. He currently represents the MFSA as alternate Member on the European Banking Authority which since January 2011 has taken over all existing and ongoing tasks and responsibilities from the Committee of European Banking Supervisors (CEBS) where he was the Authority s representative. During 2009, Karol was appointed as Chair of the CEBS Task Force on Supervisory Disclosure (TFSD). He has also provided assistance as an Expert on Banking Provisions of Financial Services acquis within the ambit of the EU Commission s TAIEX program.
GRAZIELLA GATT Manager Policy, Crisis Management and Stress Testing within Financial Stability Department, Central Bank of Malta Ms Graziella Gatt has joined the Central Bank of Malta in 1995 and today occupies the role of Manager Policy, Crisis Management and Stress Testing within Financial Stability Department. Meanwhile she has carried out her studies in Banking and Finance with the University of Manchester and furthered her post-graduate studies in Finance with the University of Leicester. Ms Gatt had a work experience at the Financial Stability Directorate of the European Central Bank (ECB) and still contributes to the tasks of the ECB through her participation in various task forces and working groups from time to time. Ms Gatt can be reached on gattg@centralbankmalta.org.
DANIEL MAGRIN Head Corporate Strategy, Bank of Valletta Group Daniel Magrin read a BSc (Hons) degree in Computing from the University of Greenwich, graduating with first class honours. He pursued his formal studies with an MBA degree from Grenoble School of Business with a distinction award. He has previously occupied the positions of Network Engineer and Senior Analyst within Bank of Valletta s IT department and delivered various courses. Through his current position Daniel is actively involved in all stages of the strategic planning process for the Bank of Valletta Group and co-ordinates strategic and business planning exercises with the various areas of the business as required from time to time. His main areas of interest are strategy execution and performance measurement.
MARIO MALLIA Chief Risk Officer, Bank of Valletta Group Mario Mallia, an accountant by profession, is Chief Risk Officer at the Bank of Valletta Group, where he is responsible for the management of both financial and non-financial risk. Mario is chairman of the Asset-Liability Management Committee (ALCO) and of the Credit Committee at BOV. He is also a member of the Group Executive Committee, and a director on the board of MSV Life plc. Mario has worked for BOV since 1979, and has occupied the post of CRO since May 2008. He has previously carried out various other roles at BOV, the most recent being that of Chief Finance Officer. His main professional interests are bank capital management and risk-based performance measurement.
LILIANA PORTELLI Head, the Operational Risk unit at Bank of Valletta Liliana Portelli heads the Operational Risk unit at Bank of Valletta. She has driven the Bank s implementation of the Operational Risk Management Framework for the past 3 years and has previously held roles in Knowledge Services and Strategic Planning. For a number of years she has gained experience in the bank s operations, thus developing an understanding of retail processes. She has read for a Masters Degree in Business Administration.
CLAUDIA RAUSI Head the Risk Research & Regulation Unit within the Risk Management Unit at Bank of Valletta plc Claudia Rausi heads the Risk Research & Regulation Unit within the Risk Management Unit at BOV, following a management post held at Market Risk. Formerly Head Compliance, Corporate Services & Risk Management at Valletta Fund Services, a subsidiary of the BOV group and a spin off company of another BOV subsidiary Valletta Fund Management Limited, where she worked for over ten years. She sits on a number of Committees within BOV Group, including the NPAC on New Products and Trust Committee. She read a Masters Degree in Business and holds, CeFA, a Post Graduate Certificate in Education, and a Bachelor Degree in Psychology and Philosophy with the University of Malta.
KAREN SCERRI Credit Risk Analyst within the Credit Risk Management Unit, Bank of Valletta plc Karen Scerri is a Credit Risk Analyst within the Credit Risk Management Unit at Bank of Valletta. Besides responsibility for the Bank s credit policies and the dissemination of good banking practice to the Bank s lending staff, the role entails carrying out risk analyses of the Bank s corporate lending requests and their reporting to the Credit Committee and the Board of Directors, as well as a number of functions relating to the monitoring of the Bank s credit portfolio. Karen has previously held positions within the Bank s Cost Efficiency Unit, SME Support Unit and Legal Office. In the last few years she has lectured within the Credit Faculty of the Bank s Training Programme, mainly in the areas of credit risk and creative accounting. Karen holds a degree in Accountancy (University of Malta) and an MBA in Management Consulting (Grenoble Graduate School of Business). She is married to Herbert and they have a daughter, Lara.
RAY VELLA Deputy Director, the On-Site Section within the Banking Unit. Malta Financial Services Authority Ray Vella started his career at the Central Bank of Malta in 1976 after having concluded his Studies by obtaining a Diploma in Business Management from the Malta College of Arts Science and Technology (MCAST). At the Central Bank, Ray was assigned to various different departments, amongst which the Foreign Exchange Department, Finance Office, Investments Office and Internal Audit. He was assigned to Banking Supervision Department in 1991 where he was responsible for heading inspection teams during on-site visits at licensed credit and financial institutions. During this time, Ray pursued his banking studies and attained his ACIB Diploma in 1996. When the banking supervision function was transferred from the Central Bank to the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) in 2002, Ray joined the new single regulatory authority as Deputy Director in charge of the On-Site Section within the Banking Unit.
STEPHANIE VELLA Director, Economic Consultancy Stephanie Vella graduated Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) in Economics from the University of Malta in 2002 and obtained a Master of Arts in Economics in 2004 presenting a dissertation on small state and exchange rate regimes. She worked at the Central Bank of Malta within the Economic Analysis Office for three years. She is currently a Director of a firm specializing in Economic Consultancy. She is also a part-time lecturer at the Economics Department of the University of Malta teaching Public Sector Economics and Intermediate Macroeconomics at a graduate level. She is currently pursuing post doctorial studies focus on the concept of fiscal discipline and economic growth. Her main research interests are small states studies and fiscal policy.