Aspida Insights
Aspida Insights is where we draw on our knowledge, experience and expertise in key business areas such as compliance and risk management, regulation and corporate governance to offer our thoughts, forecasts and advice on a range of topical issues or areas of client concern.
Here you’ll find recent blogs, editorials, commentary, opinion and advisory pieces as well as videos and vox pops encapsulating Aspida Group’s extensive knowledge and insights.
You’ll also find news on developments at Aspida, offering insights into our business, and our people and our work in the communities in which we operate.
Aspida Insights
Aspida Insights is where we draw on our knowledge, experience and expertise in key business areas such as compliance and risk management, regulation and corporate governance to offer our thoughts, forecasts and advice on a range of topical issues or areas of client concern.
Here you’ll find recent blogs, editorials, commentary, opinion and advisory pieces as well as videos and vox pops encapsulating Aspida Group’s extensive knowledge and insights.
You’ll also find news on developments at Aspida, offering insights into our business, and our people and our work in the communities in which we operate.
Economic Substance – the practical steps you can take to comply
Aspida’s Doug MacKay takes you through the practical steps that can be taken to ensure you comply with the economic substance rules, without relying on any Covid exemptions on travel restrictions.
Thoughts
Forecasts
Advice
News
Demystifying the ICT Questionnaire
Following the publication by the Malta Financial Services Authority ( ‘MFSA’) in December 2020 of its Guidance on Technology Arrangements, ICT and Security Management, and Outsourcing Arrangements (the ‘MFSA ICT Guidance’), and the issuance of a number of related circulars (the ‘ICT Circulars’), more recently, the MFSA sent to all Maltese regulated firms a questionnaire (the ‘ICT Questionnaire).
Insights on the Governance Guernsey Annual Convention
The Aspida team was out in force at the Annual Governance Guernsey conference yesterday where we were proud to be sponsors.
Anti-money laundering, finding a better way
Not your average holiday read, but our Joint Chair, Wayne Bulpitt, took time during his recent holidays to read the Financial Intelligence Service (FIS) Annual Report 2020 and was struck by how little impact evidence is reported.
Getting the right compliance culture
Culture is made up of values, beliefs and behaviours which are shared by a group of people and driven by leaders. Everyone in the Financial Services is concerned by it, from junior to senior employee, senior management, the Board of Directors, to shareholders and other key stakeholders. When the workplace is so driven by the bottom line, it is important that a good culture is deeply embedded within an organisation to motivate employees to do right even when no one is looking.
Treating Customers Fairly – who wouldn’t?
A core principle of financial services regulation and indeed the very foundation that trust between client and service provider is based is that of acting fairly and in the client’s interest.
The trials and tribulations of relocating during a global pandemic.
Lezanne Kretschmer, our recently appointed Head of Company Secretarial Services, shares a personal account and anecdotes of what to expect and what it takes to relocate during a global pandemic.
Compliance Transformation – more than rules and laws!
Horizon scanning, taking into account future developments, known and indeed unknown, is a key expectation of regulators when it comes to their requirements of compliance functions. But what if that horizon includes big changes to the methods of your compliance oversight itself?
Reporting Suspicion
On 15th July 2021, the Commission issued its report on the thematic review on the reporting of suspicion of money laundering or terrorist financing. The thematic review comes after the Commission identified that some firms did not have effective policies, procedures and controls for the timely reporting of suspicion through their supervision process.
