Legal consequences of the use of the Internet as a medium for financial services.

Abstract

The Internet is changing the world as we know it and the financial services industry is no exception. In my thesis I have sought to identify and examine the principal consequences and risks that emerge as a result of the use of the Internet as a medium for financial services. These issues fall primarily within two categories. Some have been encountered by the traditional financial services sector and now take a new dimension like security and jurisdiction whereas other issues are novel and are a consequence of the very nature of the Internet such as electronic contracts and electronic payments. This is a legal study in an area full of technical details but I have limited myself to the legal aspects of the issues. In view of the fact that this is a relatively new legal area, I have sought to give a general overview of the present situation since legislation dealing with online financial services is either non-existent or else very recent. It is also in view of its novelty that I have examined this area of law from a regulatory aspect. I have focused on the regulatory response of the European Union in view of Malta's application to join and in most cases I juxtaposed this latter approach to the significantly different American regulatory approach. Throughout the thesis I have highlighted current Maltese legislation in order to find the optimum regulatory framework for online financial services in Malta.