MACM Annual Credit Conference 2026: Cash Flow, Credit Risk and Malta’s Next Phase

Healthy cash flow is increasingly the line between companies that can invest and those forced into defensive decisions. Late payments, tighter access to finance, and global disruptions have turned liquidity management into a strategic discipline, not just an operational task.

The MACM Annual Credit Conference 2026, marking 25 years of the Malta Association of Credit Management, focused heavily on this reality under the theme: “Protecting Cash Flow – Adopting Good Credit Management Practices.”

Late Payments as a Structural Risk

Recent figures confirm that late payments remain a structural risk rather than a temporary side effect of past crises. The gap between Malta and the broader EU represents weeks of cash locked up in receivables:

Malta’s Average Days Sales Outstanding (DSO): > 74 days

EU Average (B2B): ~ 60 days

EU Average (B2G): ~ 70 days

EU‑wide analysis shows that more than half of European companies now report late payments are causing business problems—a marked increase from pre‑2021. In Malta, this is reinforced by structural patterns: rapid growth without adequate working capital, excess inventory, heavy fixed-asset investment, high gearing levels, and underdeveloped credit management.

A Circular Link with Access to Finance

One of the most critical insights from the conference is the circular relationship between delayed collections and access to finance:

Longer receivable collections lead to liquidity constraints.

Firms face difficulties securing bank credit or external funding.

Limited financing forces these firms to delay payments to their own suppliers.

“Simply put: companies often pay late because they are paid late.”

For many SMEs, management teams spend almost a full working day each week chasing overdue invoices. Breaking this cycle requires a rethink of payment terms, stronger credit discipline, and financing solutions that align cash inflows with outflows.

What Finance Leaders Optimise For

Across sectors and company sizes, finance leaders are aligning credit management with strategic mandates, optimising for:

Predictable cash flow

Growth properly priced for risk

High‑quality customers

Reliable forecasts

Revenue volume still matters, but its value is severely limited if the cash it generates is slow, volatile, or uncertain.

From Silos to a Partnership Model

A persistent challenge in managing cash flow is internal misalignment. Credit, Sales, and Finance often pursue different objectives using different data. Addressing this requires an integrated partnership model:

Sales: Understands the customer’s business model and operating cycle best. They need to operate with a clear understanding of how commercial decisions impact cash flow.

Credit: Must be involved earlier in the commercial process to help shape terms, limits, and risk appetite.

Finance: Complements data with real-world context for dynamic risk calibration.

Crucially, accountability must be shared. Incentive structures—particularly for Sales—should increasingly reflect cash collection and revenue quality, not just gross volume.

Malta’s Economic Context and Strategic Pivot

Malta’s broader economic indicators highlight both progress and emerging gaps. While median household net wealth has risen and foreign investor sentiment has improved, a strategic pivot is necessary.

Transitioning away from resource‑heavy construction and low‑value support services toward higher‑value activities (digital services, well‑regulated fintech, life sciences, maritime tech, and ESG‑aligned manufacturing) is vital. Access to predictable working capital is a prerequisite for businesses intending to make this shift rather than relying on low‑margin, cash‑hungry activity.

Late Payments, Cross‑Border Trade, and Sector Differences

Payment performance varies markedly across the European landscape:

Company Size: Large companies tend to pay later, while micro-enterprises are often the most punctual.

Cross-Border Trade: Exporters report more late payment issues than domestic-only firms.

Sector Dynamics: Industries like construction can be highly punctual in some markets and the slowest in others.

For an open, trade‑dependent economy like Malta, understanding these patterns is critical when expanding.

Back to Basics: Clarity, Discipline, and Early Action

Amid all the discussion on strategy, getting the basics right still matters most:

Clear Terms: Payment terms must be unambiguous, clearly reflected on invoices with a specific due date, and understood across all departments and the customer.

Common-Sense Safeguards: Operating on credit inherently involves risk, but practical measures and discipline can significantly reduce bad debts.

Early Intervention: The likelihood of collection drops the longer an invoice is outstanding. Proactive follow-ups and clear escalation paths are essential.

Liquiditas’ Perspective: Proactive Cash Flow Design

Liquiditas, a Malta-licensed institution specialising in lending and supply chain finance, operates at the center of these dynamics.

During the panel discussion, Keith Attard (Executive Director & Chief Risk & Compliance Officer at Liquiditas) highlighted the need to move beyond reacting to late payments. Traditional tools, like bank overdrafts, often address only a fraction of the liquidity challenge.

Supply chain finance offers a forward-looking alternative:

For Buyers: Enables early payment options for suppliers, strengthening commercial relationships and allowing for better payment terms negotiation.

For Suppliers: Provides greater certainty of payment and improved control over cash inflows.

When payment behaviour, credit decisions, and financing tools are treated as a connected system, businesses gain the levers needed to protect liquidity without sacrificing growth.

Get in touch with us at [email protected]