Malta enjoys a stable political climate with accredited economic growth higher than most EU countries and thus, is guaranteed to be a safe hub from which to operate one’s business. Additionally, being part of the Commonwealth, a member of the EU since 2004 and part of the Schengen area since 2007, has aided Malta to promote itself as a hub which provides a perfect platform for trade and free movement.
Malta does not only guarantee safety and stability to those wishing to operate their business from Malta, but provides a forum within which a whole ecosystem is in place to support the growth and emancipation of one’s business. From direct government support to attractive tax incentives, Malta has, time and time again, proven to be one of the leading jurisdictions for business ventures to thrive.
Indeed, Malta has never shied away from being first with regards to regulating various prominent industries. In this respect, the best success story has been that of the remote gaming industry, where Malta was the first country in the world to regulate such industry back in 2004. With its first mover advantage and a robust regulatory framework in place, Malta became a reference point for all other jurisdictions, with various jurisdictions just starting to take the first steps towards regulating the remote gaming industry, fourteen years after Malta had set the standard.
Malta is determined to achieve the same success in the distributed ledger technology (DLT) industry, and indeed, aims to live up to the expectations of becoming the world’s ‘Blockchain Island’. With various notable benefits in its arsenal, Malta has opened its doors wide to influential, established businesses and promising start-ups alike, following the setting up a welcoming regulatory framework which simultaneously incentivize business growth and affords protection to the participants of the same ecosystem
The blockchain & crypto ecosystem in Malta
- Malta has been chosen as a base of operations by various prominent companies in the blockchain space such as OKEx, Tokenomica, Instacoins, ZBX, and others.
- Tim Draper himself has endorsed Malta and claimed that it has a big lead over other jurisdictions due to its efforts in the blockchain space.
- Two of the largest blockchain events in Europe, Delta Summit & Malta Blockchain Summit, took place in Malta which brought together the main industry players, investors, local service providers and professionals.
- Two blockchain and crypto associations – Bitmalta and Blockchain Malta Association.
- The University of Malta and the Malta Information Technology Authority (MITA) have partnered to set up a €300,000 blockchain and DLT focused scholarship fund.
- The University of Malta offers a Masters in DLT course which covers three main verticals: IT, Business, and Law.
Tax and Operational Regime
- Malta offers an attractive EU approved tax regime combining a system of tax refunds and a headline tax rate which results in an advantageous overall effective tax rate.
- A bank account from another jurisdiction may be used for the operations of the company.
- No need for physical presence for the actual registration of the company. No requirement for local resident partners/shareholders.
- No withholding taxes on outbound remittances of dividends, interest or royalties.
- No stamp duty or income tax on gains made on disposal of shares in Maltese companies by non-residents.
- Tax incentives for highly qualified personnel operating in specific industries.
Business Jurisdiction in General
- GDP growth of 5% in 2019, making it the second best rate in Europe.
- Robust financial services sector.
- Attractive citizenship, residence and key employee programs aimed at facilitating.
- International mobility of families and employees.
- One of the least affected EU member states in the 2008-2012 recession.
- One of the least affected EU member states in the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Double-tax treaties with a large number of EU and non-EU jurisdictions
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