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A presence in Malta › Licensed by the MFSA

Office space for MFSA-licensed firms

Boardroom E set for fourteen, with a screen at the far end

Substance in Malta, for financial services firms

An address alone is not enough. Investment firms, fund managers, and payment and e-money institutions need their head office and registered office in Malta, and the MFSA looks for substance here: real work, decisions and enough people, in numbers that depend on the licence. It has said it will not accept letter-box entities. BUSINESSLABS gives your team a real place to work: a private office or dedicated desks with a lease agreement you can use with regulators, and boardrooms for board meetings. The B2B Malta team can help with the business plan.

Tell us what you need
See the offices

Reception 08:00–17:00, Monday to Friday

What the regulator looks for

Run from Malta, not only registered here

  1. Head office in MaltaInvestment firms, fund managers, and payment and e-money institutions licensed here must have their head office and registered office in Malta
  2. Part of the work herePayment and e-money institutions must carry out at least part of their licensed activities in Malta
  3. People running it from herePayment and e-money institutions need at least two people directing the business from Malta; crypto-asset firms need enough key staff, including an executive director, based in Malta
  4. No letter-box set-upsThe MFSA will not accept letter-box entities, and it looks closely at firms that outsource heavily, including to their own group
  5. A confirmed addressBefore a new payment, e-money or crypto firm starts business, the MFSA may ask it to confirm the address it uses for regulated activities
  6. Fund boards meet in MaltaMFSA guidance for investment funds says their board meetings are held in Malta, at the scheme’s registered office or another place agreed with the MFSA

A summary for orientation, not legal advice. Every point carries its source and the date it was last checked.

Sources, and the last review

  1. LawFinancial Institutions Act (Cap. 376), article 5 ↗
  2. LawInvestment Services Act (Cap. 370), article 6 ↗
  3. RulebookFinancial Institutions Rulebook, chapter 1 (FIR/01), October 2025, rules R1-2.1.3 and R1-2.5.1 ↗
  4. RulebookMarkets in Crypto-Assets Rulebook, version 3.00, rule R3-2.5.2 ↗
  5. GuidanceCorporate Governance Manual for Directors of Collective Investment Schemes, 2.4.13 ↗
  6. RulesInvestment Services Rules, Part BIII (fund managers), SLC 1.16, and paragraphs 17 and 18 for de minimis managers ↗
  7. FIAUImplementing Procedures Part I, section 5.1.2, on where the MLRO is based ↗
  8. ReviewedChecked on 4 November 2026

How BUSINESSLABS covers it

Everything but the licence

  1. The leaseA lease agreement for the use of space, a private office or a dedicated desk, that you can use with regulators
  2. Your teamDesks and offices for the people who direct and run the business from Malta, with access cards for 24/7
  3. Board meetingsBoardrooms for eight to thirty, by the hour; members use their monthly credits
  4. The planA business plan and market research from the B2B Malta team
A private office for two, with desks by a floor-to-ceiling window

Questions

What people ask

The questions as people ask them, in search and to AI assistants.

Can an MFSA-licensed firm work from a coworking desk?

The MFSA's published rules do not say whether a coworking desk is enough. They ask for substance in Malta: the people, decisions and work your licence requires. Agree the set-up with your advisers before you apply.

Is a registered office or virtual-office address enough for an MFSA licence?

No. Licensed firms must show substance in Malta, and the MFSA has said it will not accept letter-box entities. Providing a registered office, or a correspondence or administrative address, to other companies is itself a company service that needs MFSA authorisation, and we do not offer it.

Does the MLRO have to be in Malta?

It depends on the licence. The MLRO must be one of the firm's own officers, senior enough, approved by the MFSA and with enough time for the role, and the role generally cannot be outsourced. The FIAU says the MLRO need not be in Malta, but that one abroad is very hard to justify for a firm that targets the Maltese market or has a physical business here. Ask your advisers what applies to you.

How many directors or staff must be based in Malta?

It depends on the licence. Payment and e-money institutions need at least two people directing the business from Malta and a board member resident in Malta; crypto-asset firms need at least one executive director based in Malta; fund managers need at least two full-time people resident in the EU, except the smallest (de minimis) managers, which need an established place of business in Malta. The MFSA can ask for more.

Can we hold our board meetings here?

Yes: boardrooms seat eight to thirty, by the hour, with screens for directors who join by video. The MFSA's governance code expects boards to meet at least once a quarter and does not say where. Investment funds are different: MFSA guidance says their board meetings are held in Malta, at the scheme's registered office or at another place agreed with the MFSA.

Does the MFSA visit firms' offices?

Yes. The law lets the MFSA carry out on-site inspections of licensed firms, and after licensing it may meet a new firm in person or online.

Do you help with the licence application?

The B2B Malta team helps with the business plan and market research. The application itself is for your legal and compliance advisers.

The end of the line

Tell us what you need

We reply with the options that fit your licence and your team, and what they cost.

Business plan?
Business support

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