• Foreign investors and enterprises on the island – why they are there.
• The business, regulatory and other incentives.
• The Gulf connection: current Gulf investments in Malta, including SmartCity; Malta’s commercial, trade and financial connections with the GCC countries; Malta Enterprise’s activities in the Gulf.

Alan Camilleri, Executive Chairman, Malta Enterprise

• The global growth opportunities for sharia-compliant services and products in banking, insurance, fund management and capital markets.
• Islamic finance within a European financial services framework.
• Malta as a strategically well-positioned base from where Islamic finance institutions can penetrate markets in Europe and North Africa: eg Malta SPVs for sukuk issues, murabaha and other products; Malta trust legislation in a sharia-compliant context.

Reuben Buttigieg, Managing Director, Erremme Business Advisors and Chairman, Management School, Malta Institute of Management

• Bahrain, the Middle East’s financial capital for more than 40 years: current and future trends in conventional and Islamic finance.
• Two-way ties: European financial institutions doing business in Bahrain, Bahraini institutions in Europe – recent developments and further opportunities.
• Bahrain and Malta: Parallels, commonalities and potential shared opportunities for these two island states.
  
• Monetary union in the Gulf Co-operation Council countries: progress to date, and what lessons can be learnt from Europe’s Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), in particular Malta’s adoption of the euro?

• What are the island’s attractions as a financial centre in the Mediterranean?
• What specific opportunities does Malta present for Middle Eastern financial institutions?
• How does FinanceMalta promote the country as a regional finance centre?

Kenneth Farrugia, Chairman, FinanceMalta

• Banking: robust and resilient, Malta’s banking sector is small by international comparison but it is growing, it has a number of Gulf investors, and its activities encompass Europe, the Middle East and beyond..
• Wealth management: a natural hub for wealth management and family offices in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East and beyond; it is also an attractive domicile for high achievers to register their luxury yachts and aircraft.
• Fund management: retail funds and hedge funds are growning rapidly.

• The long-standing financial, commercial and investment ties between Europe and the Gulf: strengths and weaknesses.
• Where do future opportunities lie, for Gulf businesses in Europe, and vice versa?
• How Malta fits into the picture.

The Hon Tonio Fenech, Minister of Finance, the Economy and Investment, Government of Malta