Cap. 487 Art. 19Power of the competent authority to protect the public interest.

(1) Without prejudice to the powers conferred to the competent authority under article 16, the competent authority may, where it is satisfied that sufficient serious circumstances exist, proceed to take one or more of the following measures:

(a) require the intermediary forthwith to take such steps as the competent authority may consider necessary to rectify or remedy the circumstances;

(b) appoint a person to advise the intermediary in the proper conduct of its business;

(c) appoint a person to take charge of the assets of the intermediary, or any portion of them, for the purposes of safeguarding the interests of insureds, policyholders, creditors or other interested persons and, in the case of a local company, shareholders of the company;

(d) appoint a person to assume control of the business of the intermediary, either to carry on that business or to carry out such other function or functions in respect of such business, or part thereof, including to take the necessary action for the intermediary to be dissolved and wound up, as the competent authority may direct;

(e) issue an order for the dissolution and winding up of the enrolled company or, in the case of a foreign company, for the winding up of its business in Malta;

(f) appoint a competent person to act as liquidator for the purpose of winding up the affairs of the enrolled company;

(g) fix the remuneration to be paid by the intermediary to any person appointed under this article;

(h) require the intermediary to submit a financial recovery plan if it considers that the interest of insureds, policyholders, creditors or other interested persons are likely to be prejudiced owing to a deterioration in the financial position of the intermediary;

(i) require a registered or enrolled person to remove the word "insurance" as part of his or its description or title and not make use of such word on any letter paper, in any notice or advertisement, or in any another similar manner;

(j) do such other act or require the doing of such other thing as it may deem appropriate in the circumstances, and having proceeded in any one or more of the manners aforesaid,

(a) under sub-article (1)(b), it shall be the duty of the intermediary to act in accordance with the advice given by such person unless and until the competent authority, on representations made to it, directs otherwise;

(b) under sub-article (1)(c), the intermediary shall deliver to such person all the assets of which he is placed in charge, and all the powers, functions and duties of the intermediary in respect of those assets, and in relation to a company, whether exercisable by the company in general meeting, or by the directors, or by any other person, including the legal and judicial representation of the intermediary, shall be exercisable by and vest in the person appointed under the said sub-article to the exclusion of any other person;

(c) under sub-article (1)(d), the intermediary shall submit the business to the control of such person and shall provide him with such facilities as he may require the intermediary to provide him to carry on that business or to carry out the functions assigned to him under the said sub-article; and all the powers, functions and duties of the intermediary, and in relation to a company whether exercisable by the intermediary in general meeting, or by the directors, or by any other person, including for the purposes of the dissolution and winding up of the intermediary as well as the legal and judicial representation of the intermediary in all matters, shall be exercisable by and vest in him to the exclusion of any other person;

(d) under sub-article (1)(f), such person shall be the liquidator of the intermediary for all purposes of law to the exclusion of any other person: Provided that the competent person shall not take any decision for the purpose of the dissolution and winding up of the intermediary, unless the competent authority issues a directive to that effect in terms of article 31A of the Insurance Business Act, made applicable by article 54 of the Act, and any such directive may contain such instructions, requirements and conditions as the competent authority may consider necessary, including with regard to the mode of winding up. that an intermediary should be dissolved and wound up by the court for the reason set out in article 214(2)(b)(iii) of the Companies Act, and where the court accedes to the application, the relevant provisions of the Companies Act in relation to the dissolution and winding up by the court and any other applicable provisions of any other law shall apply.

(3) In the case of a foreign company, the branches and offices in Malta of that company shall, if the competent authority so directs and to the extent it so directs be deemed to constitute a separate company.

(4) Any measure adopted in terms of sub-article (1) shall remain in force notwithstanding that an intermediary ceases to be enrolled for whatever reason, unless the competent authority otherwise directs.