Abigail Agius Mamo to depart from CEO Role at the Malta Chamber of SMEs After 10 Years of Success
09 July 2024
Abigail Agius Mamo to depart from CEO Role at the Malta Chamber of SMEs...
Malta Chamber of SMEs highlights the lack of cooperation from banks
01 June 2022
The Malta Chamber of SMEs has been very vociferous in criticizing the banking situation in Malta. The matter is once again on the top national agenda for Malta and its policy makers.
The SME Chamber also announced results of a recent study among its members which shows how serious the situation is with access to financing and adequate banking services as a top pressing worry, claiming unjustified charges or bureaucracy as main hurdles to their business.
In an interview with Times of Malta, Malta Chamber of SMEs CEO Ms Abigail Agius Mamo said that businesses are being left hanging for months when applying to open a local bank account, with some being refused one altogether.
She insisted that “despite the introduction of new fees, business operators feel that the quality of customer service has worsened. Following two years of dealing with the repercussions of a pandemic and the Ukraine war, lack of cooperation from local banks is the last straw breaking the camel’s back,” Agius Mamo said.
She noted that with BOV being a dominant player in the banking sector, some 90% of the chamber’s members flagging concern over banking matters are BOV clients.
SME Chamber CEO said that “we understand there are increased regulatory struggles, but small businesses feel banks are not absorbing their share of the burden.”
In 2013, the top five pressing problems flagged in a similar survey were not linked to banking. The concerns were business costs, late payments, competition, bureaucracy and keeping up with legislation.
Discussions with the authorities and the banks themselves are underway.
