Fallout from the global recession meant the country had to prove the advantages of being small and effective. It succeeded.

When the recession hit the tourism and manufacturing sectors, the government intervened with supportive policies, not bailouts.

“In terms of manufacturing, the advantage of being small played its part because we as a government could sit down with every major company in Malta that was affected by the crisis,” says Fenech.

It might be his private sector background informing such actions, as the minister has 12 years of experience in consulting.

Companies were incentivised to invest in post-recession opportunities and human resources. Now, those same companies have grown and continue to expand.

“The lesson we learned is: use what you have, which [in Malta] is being small and effective,” he says.

As the country develops, it looks to branch out internationally in the future while staying true to its past roots.

The small nation is no longer waiting to be discovered, says Farrugia, noting a marked shift in mindset towards international markets after the island was granted EU membership.

The domestic market remains important to the core, but he identifies clear signs of growth such as an increasing share of services to European and North American-based fund managers.

Though Europe is Malta’s “big brother”, Farrugia also appreciates that 160 years as a British colony left its mark on the country and this influence includes good business acumen and English-language fluency among workers.

“I think we always look to the UK as the country we wish to emulate because they’ve had great success in financial services.”

Development strategy for the Maltese financial services industry includes sector diversification and “attractive” legislation.

As the presiding officer of one of the top regulatory boards in the world, Professor Bannister takes pride in its adaptability.

“It operates more to the timeframe of the companies; we are flexible,” he says of Malta’s competitive advantage for a wide variety of financial services players, a comment also true of the board’s attitude to meeting diverse legislative needs.

Malta implements and maintains good governance on directives and has a compliant tax regime, says Bannister, who is keen to dispel notions about the island being an offshore tax haven, which would exclude it from EU membership.

“There are lots of perceptions, but they have changed. Otherwise we wouldn’t have succeeded,” he says.