The Malta Women & Finance Summit 2026 is a half-day, interactive conference designed to support women in Malta across all life stages to better understand, manage, and take control of their financial lives.
Combining plenary discussions, practical workshops, and direct engagement with financial institutions, the Summit creates a safe, informed, and accessible space for women to engage confidently with money – from everyday financial decisions to long-term planning.
The summit places lived experience alongside professional expertise while recognising that financial confidence is shaped not only by knowledge, but by trust, behaviour, and access to reliable guidance.
Despite Malta’s strong financial services sector, many women continue to report lower confidence in financial decision-making, limited engagement with long-term planning, and uncertainty when navigating banking, insurance, investment, pensions, and entrepreneurship support systems.
These challenges vary significantly across life stages – from young women entering the workforce, to mothers returning to work, entrepreneurs, and women approaching retirement – yet are rarely addressed in a joined-up forum.
The summit responds to this gap by:
- Connecting women directly with trusted institutions, regulators, and advisors
- Normalising conversations about money in an inclusive, non-technical environment
- Demystifying financial systems through clear, practical explanations
- Addressing real barriers to accessing finance, protection, and investment across ages
By bringing together women, financial institutions, regulators, and peripheral organisations, the summit strengthens financial capability, builds confidence, and supports women’s long-term economic independence.
The Malta Women & Finance Summit 2026 is organised by BPW (Valletta) Malta, in collaboration with Market Accents and CapableMind.
Why this matters
Evidence at European and national level indicates persistent gender gaps in financial confidence, engagement, and long-term financial outcomes — despite comparable levels of financial knowledge.
Although Malta lacks a single nationally published indicator on financial decision-making confidence by gender, local programme data, practitioner evidence, and EU-level trends consistently point to high levels of uncertainty and overwhelm among women when navigating complex financial choices, particularly in digital finance contexts.
Data from OECD/INFE shows that women across EU countries score 10–15% lower on measures of financial confidence than men on average, even where financial knowledge levels are similar.
This confidence gap is a key determinant of lower participation in investment and long-term financial planning.
In Malta, data from the National Statistics Office Malta shows that women face higher risks of financial vulnerability at certain life stages, particularly among single-parent households, women with caring responsibilities, and those in part-time or interrupted employment.
Across the EU, women retire with around 30% lower pension income or pension wealth than men, driven by the cumulative effects of the gender pay gap, career interruptions, and lower lifetime contributions.
While women participate less frequently in investment markets, international evidence indicates that women’s long-term investment outcomes are comparable or stronger, reflecting more cautious and disciplined decision-making when appropriate support and confidence are present.
The event is geared towards women across all demographics and age groups, including:
- Students and early-career professionals
- Women returning to work
- Entrepreneurs, solopreneurs, and SME owners
- Women approaching retirement
Programme highlights
- Launch of the Women & Finance Toolkit and next-step opportunities
- Keynote: Understanding money through a woman’s lens — behaviour, confidence, and independence
- Plenary Panel 1: Access to finance across ages — from everyday money to long-term wealth
- Workshops: Let’s talk money (family finances, budgeting, saving); Protecting yourself (insurance, liabilities, everyday risks); Building your future (pensions, savings, retirement planning); How to start your own business (support for solopreneurs and SMEs)
- Plenary Panel 2: Scams, fraud, and financial safety
- Masterclass: Investing for women
Speakers will be drawn from across public institutions, financial services, regulation, media, and entrepreneurship, ensuring a balanced mix of expertise and lived experience.
The Malta Women & Finance Summit 2026 will take place on Wednesday 4 February, 2026 from 8.15 to 14.15 hrs, followed by networking lunch, at the Salini Resort.
