The season commenced with "Navigating ViDA: A new era for VAT compliance", a timely examination of the European Union's VAT in the Digital Age reforms. The episode, moderated by Mark Abela and featuring VAT specialists Anna Maria Herrera and Mirko Gulic, explored ViDA's move beyond mere digitisation. Discussions centred on streamlined VAT registration, expanded platform obligations, and innovative approaches to reporting and e-invoicing. The episode encouraged businesses to view ViDA not as a compliance task but as an opportunity to refine processes and enhance data integrity.
"Cybersecurity and AI: From risk to resilience" shifted the focus to technology. With moderation by Shreeram Kumble and insights from Kirsten Cremona and Jake Azzopardi, it challenged prevalent perceptions of cybersecurity as purely a cost centre and AI as solely a productivity tool. The panel addressed deepfake risks, disinformation campaigns, the rise of agentic AI, and the creation of virtual workforces. A consistent theme emerged: effective transformation starts with people and trust, highlighting the importance of balancing innovation with protection, embedding security into design, and framing AI governance to accelerate enterprise ambitions.
Mid-season, "Unveiling new opportunities in private equity" highlighted alternative capital within an evolving regulatory landscape. Moderated by Nadia Vella with contributions from Chris Mifsud Bonnici and Mark Tabone, the episode explored private equity’s role in injecting fresh capital, catalysing innovation, and supporting growth amidst tight traditional financing. The conversation bridged local and global dynamics, exploring value creation levers, governance standards, and sector-specific opportunities, serving as a primer for founders and CFOs on engaging with PE investors while aligning strategic goals and exit horizons.
"Maximising support for business investment through incentives" took a practical turn toward public aid. Moderated by Maria Demanuele and featuring incentives specialists Svetlik Grima and Shaun Vella Bonello, it demystified schemes across Malta and the EU—from tax credits and cash grants to training subsidies. The panel clarified GBER versus de minimis rules, eligibility criteria, aid intensities, assisted regions, and scheme caps. Crucially, it offered actionable advice on mixing programmes without double funding, maintaining documentation discipline, planning for cash flow over application cycles, and anticipating regulatory revisions that could alter aid levels.
The season concluded with "Valuation frameworks, risks, and deal mechanics in M&A". Hosted by Mark Tabone and featuring Eric Mackay and Ian Abela from PwC’s advisory deals team, the episode guided listeners through income approach, market comparables, and net asset value approaches, considering risk adjustments. It underscored benchmarking against historical earnings and sector multiples, contrasting asset-heavy FMCG/distribution models with asset-light tech/IP plays. Importantly, it connected valuations through due diligence into SPA mechanics, offering practical tools such as earn-outs and vendor financing to bridge buyer-seller expectation gaps and close deals effectively.
Latest Thought leadership
