Month: August 2022

BNF Bank p.l.c. has celebrated its very first listing on the Malta Stock Exchange with the traditional “Ringing of the Bell” ceremony. The Bank’s bond issue was a resounding success, allocating its €5,000,000 over-allotment option in full and closing the issue at €20,000,000 one week in advance of its closing date.

Throughout these years, with the new shareholders taking over the Bank’s majority stake in 2016, BNF has delivered a resilient and robust financial performance across a highly valued and trusted brand, immediately associated with the personalised service and customer-centric approach that BNF Bank has become renowned for. The listing will enable the Bank’s continued growth plans, delivering high-quality service to its customers and supporting the community which it serves.

Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director Michael Collis expressed his satisfaction at the successful closing of the bond issue, saying “We are very pleased with the market’s response and the strong show of confidence by local investors. We thank our appointed Sponsor & Manager, Jesmond Mizzi Financial Advisors, Legal Counsel, Ganado Advocates, and the Malta Stock Exchange as the registrar for their support in this issue. A special thanks goes to the dedicated team at BNF Bank who worked hard on this issue and all our staff for their continued passion and dedication in their daily work.”

HSBC Insurance Malta Ltd has been strengthening its sustainability commitment by expanding the range of environmental and social governance (ESG) initiatives to meet both its decarbonisation and employee well-being priorities. In this framework, HSBC Insurance Malta is leading the Future Skills Working Group within HSBC Malta’s Climate Action Network.

HSBC Insurance Malta’s ESG commitment is focused on three pillars: exploring sustainable investment opportunities, driving insurance financial inclusivity and establishing sustainable operations. At an HSBC Group level, HSBC Insurance has invested $8.9 million in green bonds and sustainable equity. The Group plans to further increase this investment for the benefit of policyholders and shareholders.

HSBC Insurance Malta has also been including sustainability product disclosures on how the insurer incorporates ESG factors into its policies and processes, using non-legal plain language to improve the customer experience and enable clearer customer understanding. As part of HSBC Malta’s ambitions to transition to net-zero operations and reducing paper usage, HSBC Insurance Malta has embarked on a large-scale system upgrade to support the customer journey by digitising operational process from end-to-end and eliminating paper for record-keeping. Furthermore, marketing literature is now making use of QR codes with the aim of reducing paper usage.

Muriel Rutland, Chief Executive Officer of HSBC Insurance Malta, said: “Our ESG commitments ensure that HSBC Insurance Malta plays its part in encouraging environmental protection, good corporate citizenship and manager accountability to support our transitioning to a net-zero organisation. Together with our partners, we strive to encourage the business community to drive real change towards a net-zero economy which will benefit us all and future generations.”

Additionally, HSBC Insurance Malta has been active in supporting corporate social responsibility projects. HSBC Malta Insurance employees undertook two beach clean-ups organised by Nature Trust – Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) Malta earlier in the year as part of HSBC Malta’s voluntary leave scheme. Further initiatives in the pipeline include a collaboration with the JA Malta Foundation to deliver sessions to Skolasajf, Malta’s governmental summer school scheme, and interviewing sessions for fifth formers to assist secondary school leavers in developing their interviewing skills via hands-on, real-life experiences.

Hili Properties plc, the strategic real estate investment subsidiary of Hili Ventures, has acquired a 75% shareholding in Baneasa Real Estate SRL, the owner of the imposing Miro office building in the
Baneasa area of Bucharest from major Romanian developer Speedwell. Hili Properties plc has also agreed to enter into an agreement for the acquisition of the remaining 25% shareholding in two
years’ time.

Commissioned late last year, the Miro is a Class A mixed-use property boasting 23,000 sqm of leasable area spread over five floors and a 1,700 sqm outdoor plaza. It is excellently located on Bucharest’s DN1 highway, providing direct access to the city centre, business hubs, and the airport. Its extensive list of reputable tenants includes KPMG, Rovere, COS, Eaton, Neoclinique, Speedwell,
Stradale/Mitzu, Jura and Hisky.

The Miro has been designed to be a unique, inspiring place of work, with a layout and facilities that shape a motivating space. The property was developed with a focus on the well-being of its
occupants and on sustainability as evidenced by its BREEAM ‘Excellent’ and WELL ‘Platinum’ certifications.

George Kakouras, Managing Director of Hili Properties plc, said: “We are delighted to extend our portfolio in Romania with this prime asset. We look forward to collaborating with Speedwell on the
management of the Miro and to increasing tenant satisfaction. Miro presents us with a solid, longterm investment and perfectly fits our strategy to build on the potential of assets for the benefit of
our shareholders, tenants and the local community. The Miro is a testimony to our vision to leave a positive impact on the communities in which we invest through sustainable buildings.”

Didier Balcaen, CEO and Co-Founder of Speedwell added: “This transaction once again proves that a quality asset always attracts a quality buyer, not least because it attracts high quality tenants. We
are very happy to have Hili Properties as our partner for Miro, knowing that our visions are aligned in properly managing, maintaining and further developing Miro as one of the key office locations in
the Baneasa area.”

The Miro increases Hili Properties’ portfolio value from €173.8 million to €234.2 million and extends the total leasable area to 119,092 square metres. The company’s portfolio comprises seven groceryanchored shopping centres across Latvia’s capital Riga; a private hospital in Bucharest, Romania; properties housing restaurants in key commercial districts in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta and Romania; an industrial plant in Lithuania’s Klaipeda Free Economic Zone; and three dedicated business blocks and office space in Sliema, Marsa and Floriana in Malta.

Its tenants include Premier Restaurants, Swedish-owned supermarket giant Rimi, Norwegian newsagent/convenience chain Narvesen, and international industrial materials manufacturer Rehau.

Debono Group and its subsidiary Michael Debono Ltd (MDL), Malta’s exclusive agents for Toyota, are proud to announce that Chief Executive Officer Geoffrey Debono has been sworn-in as Honorary Consul-General of Japan after having received his official Letter of Appointment from the Ambassador for Japan in Italy, HE Oe Hiroshi.

During his address Mr Debono said: “I am humbled to have been given this opportunity to further develop Malta’s economic and cultural relationship with Japan. My family’s relationship with this country dates back to 1960, when my late father Michael Debono imported the first Toyota vehicle in Malta and in Europe. Since then, our relationship with Toyota has grown from strength to strength. My personal experience working and interacting with the Japanese through my many visits over the years has always been one of loyalty, respect and hard work and I look at this role as my opportunity to give back.”

Mr Debono took charge of MDL at 21 years of age in 2005 following his father’s passing, thus inevitably taking over the representative company of Toyota Motor Corporation in Malta. Upon taking on his role as CEO, Mr Debono recruited experienced personnel to form his own management team to run the company’s day-to-day operations. Mr Debono has also continually pushed for innovation in mobility, not only keeping in line with Toyota’s vision as it introduced hybrid and electric vehicles to the international market. In addition, Mr Debono together with his team have been at the forefront of improved mobility solutions such as the ridesharing business COOL.

During the last ten years, Toyota has entrenched itself as the leading new car brand in Malta, with MDL retaining its position as a leading brand in Malta, including in customer satisfaction. The Group’s milestones also include the building of a new Toyota Retail Concept showroom and the setting-up of a fully-fledged body repair centre which uses the latest technologies on the market.

Geoffrey Debono graduated with degrees in business and entrepreneurship from the University of Malta and London Business School. He is an active member in the Malta chapter of Young Presidents Organisation (YPO) and won the “Outstanding Young Person Award for 2008’s Business, Economic and/or Entrepreneurial accomplishment” from Junior Chamber International (JCI).

The Ambassador for Japan in Italy, HE Oe Hiroshi, was present for the ceremony, along with the Commander of the Armed Forces of Malta, Brigadier Clinton O’Neil, Mr Debono’s family members and representatives from Malta’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs.