Newsletter

We publish a newsletter for our stakeholders three times annually—in April, August, and December. This electronic publication features informative interviews, updates on legislation and other relevant developments, case summaries, and the latest news about our office and its staff.  If you would like to receive our newsletter and periodic updates about our work, please follow us on Facebook and LinkedIn.

Issue 8 (August 2026)

The May - July 2026 newsletter reports on another busy period for the Office. It covers a record number of decisions, higher complaint registrations, the launch of a national initiative against scams, publication of the 2025 annual report, a landmark decision on transfer of crypto-assets and several recent case outcomes:

• The Arbiter for Financial Services issued a record number of 178 decisions in the first seven months of 2026 (78 in the same period in 2025). New complaints reached 241, compared with 185 during the same period in 2025. The Arbiter also noted that the introduction of Instant Payment Regulations in October 2025 had left some some licensed institutions unprepared for the new challenges to upgrade their pre-transactions monitoring obligations to the new reality of instant payments. He urged payment institutions to come in line with regulatory expectations.
• The Office of the Arbiter for Financial Services has collaborated with the Malta Financial Services Authority and the Malta Police Force on scamalert.mt. This new national platform provides practical information, alerts and guidance to help individuals and businesses recognise, avoid and report financial scams.
• The newsletter reproduced eleven case summaries prepared for LinkedIn concerning banking, crypto assets, insurance, payment services and pensions.
• Five Facebook posts present lessons for consumers from decisions about life insurance, ATM withdrawals, motor insurance no-claims discount and two banking scams.

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Previous Issues

Issue 7 (April 2026)

• The Arbiter for Financial Services issued a record number of decisions in the first quarter of 2026 – 120, compared to 38 in the same quarter of 2025. New complaints were also up to 98. Going forward, the Arbiter stressed the fiduciary duty of service providers to equip themselves with appropriate systems and technologies to protect their customers’ assets against the ever-evolving tactics of scammers and fraudsters. Consumers, too, are warned that prevention is better than cure.
• A follow-up Technical Note on relationship-based financial fraud issued in February urges payment service providers to strengthen staff training, consumer education, internal controls, crypto-asset awareness, and compassionate redress. It builds on Court of Appeal support for transaction monitoring and reasonable intervention.
• Two judgments of the Court of Appeal (Inferior Jurisdiction) are summarised.
• Eight case summaries uploaded to LinkedIn examine a landmark crypto decision that applies the ‘Travel Rule’ to transfers to self-hosted wallets; pension scheme closure and pension transfer delays; rejection of a home insurance claim; loyalty programme disputes; an investor’s classification; a spoofed SMS followed by a convincing call; and the reason a home loan is refused.
• Two cases shared on Instagram to give readers easy-to-follow summaries of the Arbiter’s decisions: a claim for storm damage and how ignoring professional warnings can undermine a claim for losses from a crypto scam.

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Issue 6 (December 2025)

• A record number of new complaints – over 330 – were added to the Arbiter’s caseload in 2025, the highest since the Office was established a decade ago. There were 125 decisions issued, the majority relating to banking/payments and insurance. Going forward, the Arbiter intends to issue several guidance papers to explain the Office’s expectation on the conduct of licensed institutions on scam experiences. 
• Seven case summaries uploaded to LinkedIn examine crypto investment scams, CFD trading, pension maturity values and suspicious transaction patterns.
• A selection of four consumer-focused ‘Lessons Learned’ on Facebook covering online trading, cryptocurrency scams, trading platform responsibilities and early pension exit costs.
• More content is being shared on Instagram to give the audience easy-to-follow summaries of decisions by the Arbiter for Financial Services. They include understanding the limits and responsibilities of a Basic Payments Account, to the importance of acting within legal timeframes when raising complaints about investments.
• What to do if you fell victim to a scam in view of the widened remit of the Arbiter for Financial Services to accept complaints from any person or entity that has fallen victim to a suspected fraudulent payment transaction involving financial services providers since 1 October 2025.

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Issue 5 (August 2025)

• The Arbiter’s caseload continued to rise for the first seven months of the year, with 184 new complaints and 79 decisions issued. Only nine cases were appealed, with outcomes still pending. Most complaints concerned scam-related payments via banks and non-bank providers, undervalued life insurance maturities, and serious concerns about fraud involving licensed cryptocurrency service providers. 
• A comprehensive nationwide study, commissioned by the OAFS, has thrown light on the impact of financial scams in Malta.  We highlight some key findings from this survey. 
• The 2024 Annual Report and Financial Statements of the OAFS have been published.
• A selection of five consumer-focused ‘Lessons Learned’ on Facebook covering ‘pig butchering’ scams, a financial scam involving a hotel booking, online banking fraud and travel insurance.
• A selection of five case summaries on LinkedIn examining crypto investment, travel insurance, life insurance, banking and pension investments.
• More content is being shared on Instagram to give the audience easy-to-follow summaries of decisions by the Arbiter for Financial Services. These cases touch on everyday areas like banking, corporate services, car and life insurance.

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Issue 4 (April 2025) includes:

• A word from the Arbiter on the Office's activities in Q1 2025
• Five consumer-focused 'Lessons Learned' covering life insurance premiums, fraud via SMS, high-yield bond investments, crypto asset investing, and invoice scams
• Five case summaries examining banking fraud, corporate services provider negligence, life insurance policy disputes, travel insurance claims, and cryptocurrency scams
• Court of Appeal review substantially upholding the Arbiter's decision in an investment mis-selling case.

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Issue 3 (December 2024) includes:

• Five detailed case studies examining: unauthorised payments, corporate fund transfers, life insurance maturity payouts, medical expenses claims and payment account blocking.
• Two Court of Appeal decision reviewed.
• Five consumer-focused 'Lessons Learned' covering: fraudulent payment prevention, life policy management, AI investment platform fraud, crypto asset investing guidance and invoice scam protection.
• Two educational videos addressing scam awareness.

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Issue 2 (August 2024) includes: 

• A note from the Arbiter for Financial Services, Mr Alfred Mifsud;
• Four case summaries, covering banking transactions, a corporate services provider,  a life insurance policy and a personal retirement scheme; and
• Five Lessons Learned, leveraging the Arbiter’s decisions from a consumer perspective. These covered personal and invoice scams, investment advice, ATM deposits and crypto asset investing.

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Issue 1 (April 2024) includes:

• an interview with the Arbiter for Financial Services, Mr Alfred Mifsud;
• four case summaries, covering travel insurance, a retirement scheme, a bank transfer and a purchase order for shares;
• nine takeaways from decisions of the Arbiter following the publication of a new framework Model for Allocation of Responsibility between Payment Service Providers (PSPs) and Payment Services Users (PSUs) in case of payment fraud scams; and
• amendments to the Arbiter for Financial Services Act.