Scicluna: Brexit may be opportunity for political and economic intervention

Participating in this year’s Eurofi Financial Forum In Bratislava, finance minister Edward Scicluna talked with leaders of leading international financial institutions on issues including Malta’s economy and the impact of Brexit

Scicluna held various meetings with a number of chairmen and presidents of leading international financial institutions
Scicluna held various meetings with a number of chairmen and presidents of leading international financial institutions

Finance minister Edward Scicluna joined the 2016 Eurofi Financial Forum, being held in Bratislava, Slovakia, yesterday to discuss issues related to the EU, and especially the impacts of Brexit.

Scicluna held various meetings with a number of Chairmen and Presidents of leading international financial institutions during which the future of the European Union, especially in the light of Brexit, was discussed.

In a meeting with HSBC Group chairman Douglas Flint and a number of senior officials, Scicluna discussed the effect of Brexit on the City of London, the UK and the EU itself, the effect of financial regulations on the access of funds for SMEs, and other issues of concern for Malta in the ambit of international developments, according to a statement.

“As post-Brexit political developments progress, market instability may continue to be felt,” Scicluna said in an interview during the Eurogroup meeting. “Brexit may be an opportunity by EU member states with respect to political and economic intervention,” he said, describing stronger relations with the UK as being imperative.

Scicluna also said the U.K.’s decision is a “wakeup call” for “moderate forces in the EU, which are losing ground at home to extremist factions spreading euroscepticism across the EU.”

Later, Scicluna reportedly discussed the outlook of the banks and those of Malta on international developments with the chairman of Bank of New York, Mellon Michael Cole-Fontayn and a number of senior officials, with the chairman of BNP Paribas Jean Lemierre, and with Jean-Jacques Santini, who is the head of Group Public and Regulatory Affairs and key negotiator in the reduction of the Greek national debt.

On the other hand, Scicluna also met with Michel Madelain, the vice-chairman of rating agency Moody’s, who was accompanied by director Nigel Phipps.  This discussion covered an account for Malta’s economic and financial performance to date and the direction which will be taken during upcoming presidency, with Brexit in the background.

In the evening, Scicluna participated in a panel discussion around a round table on the “Impacts of Brexit for the EU financial sector”. The panel included MEP and ALDE co-ordinator Sylvie Goulard, ECON committee, Cole-Fontayn, Vittorio Grilli, chairman of the Corporate and Investment Bank EMEA, J.P. Morgan, Thomas Wieser, chairman of the Eurogroup Working Group and the EFC, Council of the European Union and Andreas Dombret, a member of the executive board of Deutsche Bundesbank.

Minister Scicluna reiterated Malta’s resolve to see that fair Brexit negotiations are held between UK and the EU during its presidency.