VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Malta’s Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU) received a record 10,712 suspicious transaction reports (STRs) in 2025, marking a 13.6% increase over the previous year, according to its latest annual report.
For the first time, crypto asset service providers generated the highest number of reports, overtaking the remote gaming sector. Crypto-related STRs rose sharply from 1,751 in 2024 to 3,712 in 2025, accounting for more than a third of all reports.
Meanwhile, reports linked to gaming operators continued their downward trend, falling from 5,049 in 2022 to 3,022 last year.
The FIAU attributed part of the increase in crypto-related reporting to stricter compliance requirements introduced under the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation, which became fully applicable in December 2024.
Fraud was the most frequently identified suspected offence, featuring in 28% of reports where a predicate offence could be established. Tax crimes and drug trafficking accounted for 8% and 4% respectively, while in half of all cases no specific offence could be identified.
The most common trigger for filing a report was an unknown source of wealth or funds, cited in 4,583 cases. Other leading factors included uncooperative customers and adverse media findings.
The FIAU carried out 5,552 intelligence disseminations during the year, with 4,351 shared with foreign counterparts. Germany received the highest number of intelligence reports, followed by Italy.
Administrative penalties imposed by the FIAU totalled €1.34 million in 2025. The agency also conducted 21,000 searches on the Centralised Bank Account Register, which now tracks 1.9 million IBAN accounts and records relating to 1.26 million individuals.
-Photo FIAU-
(ITALPRESS).
