Controversial decisions made by Bank of Valletta will be discussed at a meeting of small shareholders in the coming days, Times of Malta is informed.

Former Labour minister Alfred Portelli, president of the Malta Association of Small Shareholders, yesterday confirmed that BOV would be one of the most important items on the agenda.

BOV has been in the news for loan financing to Electrogas, the €260,000 early retirement golden handshake to Parliamentary Secretary Michael Falzon with the right to return to the bank, and unsecured loans to cover a shortfall in fuel hedging by Air Malta.

The government is the biggest shareholder in the bank at 25%. It has the right to appoint the chairman.  

In an exchange of correspondence between Alternattiva Demokratika chairman Arnold Cassola – a BOV shareholder – and the bank, chairman John Cassar White said the bank had taken all necessary precautions when granting loans. 

“As a shareholder, let me reassure you that all the facilities that we grant are subject to the scrutiny of both our internal auditors and the external regulators who today include the European Central Bank,” Mr Cassar White said in reply.  

More in Times of Malta and the e-paper on timesofmalta.com Premium.

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