Christopher P. Buttigieg appointed to ESMA Management Board

Christopher P. Buttigieg, Chief Officer Supervision of the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA), has been appointed to the Management Board of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU’s financial markets regulator and supervisor.

Confirmed during ESMA’s Board of Supervisors meeting earlier this month, Prof. Buttigieg will officially begin his term on 1st January 2026. He will join the board alongside Marie-Anne Barbat-Layani from France, filling vacancies left by outgoing members from Greece and the Netherlands.

With over 25 years of professional experience in financial regulation and supervision, Prof. Buttigieg currently serves as the MFSA’s Chief Officer, Supervision.

In this role, he oversees the Supervision Directorate, coordinates the implementation of supervisory and regulatory strategies across all sectors under the MFSA’s remit, and chairs both the Regulatory Committee and the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AMLCFT) Committee.

He is also a member of the MFSA’s Executive Committee. Notably, Prof. Buttigieg served as the MFSA’s Interim Chief Executive Officer between October 2020 and September 2021, after CEO Joseph Cuschieri, alongside the MFSA’s General Counsel, Edwina Licari, suspended themselves from the regulator over a Las Vegas trip paid for by murder suspect Yorgen Fenech.

Throughout his career, Prof. Buttigieg has managed key regulatory functions and teams, spearheading the implementation of various European directives and regulations, and developing new national regulatory frameworks.

His expertise extends beyond Malta, as he is also a member of the Board of Supervisors for both ESMA and the European Banking Authority (EBA). He previously chaired the ESMA Data Standing Committee and currently chairs the ESMA Proportionality and Coordination Committee.

Academically distinguished, Prof. Buttigieg holds multiple degrees, including a PhD in law from the University of Sussex focused on EU securities regulation governance. He is an Associate Professor in the Banking, Finance and Investments Department at the University of Malta, a member of the Board of Trustees at the Academy of European Law (ERA) in Germany, and serves as a visiting lecturer there.

The ESMA Management Board, chaired by Verena Ross, supervises the authority’s operations and ensures compliance with its regulatory mandate. Besides Malta and France, the board counts members from Croatia, Finland, Germany and Italy.