Updated - Adds Evarist Bartolo reaction - The chairman of the Malta Financial Services Authority, Joseph Bannister, has denied claims of conflict of interest and will be writing to the Prime Minister about his position, Finance Minister Tonio Fenech said yesterday.
If there is anything to investigate or to look into, we will surely do it
Mr Fenech said he had spoken to Professor Bannister personally and had been assured that there was no truth in the claims made in Parliament by Labour MP Evarist Bartolo.
Mr Bartolo on Tuesday demanded an inquiry into how Prof Bannister was a partner in a Cayman Islands company with one of the consultants he had appointed at the MFSA.
He noted that since 2008 the MFSA had paid over €3 million in consultancy services, always awarded by direct order in breach of public procedures.
Some people, he said, were paid €1,000 per hour, although this might be justified in some cases in this sector.
Among the consultants appointed by direct order by the MFSA, there was one who operated in partnership with Prof Bannister in funds grouped under a large company in the Cayman Islands, Mr Bartolo claimed.
But Mr Fenech said Prof Bannister had assured him that this was not true and that he would prepare a report with his reactions to the claims.
Asked whether an investigation will be carried out, Mr Fenech said this depended on the contents of the report.
“If there is anything to investigate or to look into, we will surely do it. But first we will wait for the report to be sent. I do not exclude tabling Prof Bannister’s report or letter in Parliament,” he said.
Mr Bartolo claimed in Parliament that the UK Financial Services Authority had removed Clive Briault, who was responsible for surveillance of Northern Rock Bank but had been found guilty of systematic failure of duty.
Mr Briault was awarded a contract by direct order for consultancy services in Malta and had so far been paid more than €500,000. The contract was awarded by Prof Bannister, Mr Bartolo said.
Questions also had to be asked about the repeated appointment of other consultants such as Piero Ugolini and Anthony Fisher. What were the returns for Malta?
Mr Fenech warned against making such claims without verification as this could endanger the reputation of Malta as a financial services centre.
BARTOLO REACTION
In a reaction, Mr Bartolo asked Prof Bannister to categorically deny he is a director of Cayman Islands company under the name of Kairos Fund Limited, an umbrella collective investment fund with a big number of funds and a massive value of funds under management.
He asked him to categorically deny that he became a director of the company with effect from 13th June 2005 as announced by an Irish Stock Exchange Announcement of the 15th June 2005 and to categorically deny that Prof Bannister was appointed jointly with Peter Astleford, a partner and co-head of the financial services group of Dechert LLP, who had been entrusted with the setting up the American firm’s European financial services and funds practice in 1997.
He also askeds him to categorically deny that the MFSA awarded by direct contract consultancies to the extent of €463,047 to Dechert LLP and that the Annual Report of the MFSA made no reference to Prof Bannister holding any appointments on other Boards of Directors.