Kenneth Farrugia, Director of the FIAU, holds a Bachelor of Accountancy (Hons) and an MA in Business Ethics. He is a Certified Public Accountant, a fellow member of the Malta Institute of Accountants (MIA) and a member of the Malta Forum of Internal Auditors (MFIA). Throughout his career, Mr Farrugia held audit positions both within private audit firms and the public sector.

Prior to joining the FIAU, for nine years up to 2017, he was engaged within the Government of Malta’s Internal Audit and Investigations Department (IAID) and, as from November 2017, he headed the department as Director General. Mr Farrugia has extensive experience in EU Funds Audits, Internal Audit, Risk Management, Financial Investigations and OLAF Anti-Fraud Co-ordinating Services (AFCOS) related matters.

He provided support to the Internal Audit & Investigations Board (IAIB) to draft policies and procedures, to implement and manage the necessary change programmes and served as Secretary to that Board. Mr Farrugia participated in various meetings, seminars and conferences organised by the European Commission in the fields of auditing and financial investigations.

Since joining the FIAU in 2017, Mr Farrugia has provided strategic direction to the various sections of the Unit, including the section responsible for intelligence analysis, the AML/CFT supervisory and enforcement teams, and legal and international relations section. Additionally, Mr Farrugia, together with the FIAU Management team, initiated a process of reform/restructuring of the FIAU’s overall operations to better meet the challenges emanating from ML/TF risks in Malta. He frequently represents the FIAU in international fora, including the EBA AMLC, FIU Platform and EGMONT.