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Malta’s government will begin an executive search for a new leader of the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA), as incumbent Heathcliff Farrugia confirmed that he would not be renewing his CEO tenure.
An MGA executive since 2014, Farrugia was appointed Chief Executive of Malta gambling’s regulatory and licensing authority in 2018 replacing long-term incumbent Joseph Cuschieri.
Farrugia confirmed to local news sources that he had requested the government not to renew his leadership terms as MGA CEO, which would expire at the start of next year.
Declaring his resignation, Farrugia is reported to want to establish a new business with MGA Chief Regulatory Officer Karl Brincat Peplow.
Under Farrugia’s leadership, the MGA focused on expanding its money-laundering, auditing and conduct monitoring of licensees, forming a number of international cooperation agreements with European regulatory counterparts and sporting bodies.
2020 has seen significant change across Malta’s government ranks following the abrupt resignation of former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat at the start of the year, having been implicated in the direct infringement of the investigation of the murder to Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.
Malta’s governing Labour Party would appoint Robert Abela as new Prime Minister, who undertook a swift overhaul of Malta’s executive cabinet in which all Muscat appointments were asked to resign.
Farrugia’s replacement has been earmarked as a critical appointment by PM Abela’s office, taking leadership of a key agency governing a sector which contributes 7,500 direct jobs and approximately €1.5 billion to Malta’s economy.
