Budapest, 14 May 2025 – A priority goal of the new management of the Magyar Nemzeti Bank was to ensure that the supply of capital for Hungarian businesses was supported by an increasingly developed, liquid and transparent capital market in the future, said MNB Governor Varga following the ceremonial ringing of the opening bell at the Budapest Stock Exchange. Varga pointed out that in order to achieve its goals, the MNB intended to strengthen the regional role of the Hungarian stock exchange and the efforts to harmonise EU capital markets.
Governor Varga emphasised that it was crucial for the development of the Hungarian economy for the BSE to support various economic actors, from businesses to household savers, with its expanding range of services. As he pointed out, the development of investment culture and the growing interest in the capital market was demonstrated by the fact that the Hungarian household stock portfolio had increased fivefold over the past decade, reaching HUF 2,900 billion. Varga added that during the same period the market size had more than tripled, with 43 new equity issuers. The central bank governor also noted that the BUX index had doubled in the past two years, making it one of the world’s best performing stock indices, while the mid-cap index had demonstrated performance above 150 per cent. As he said, these results clearly reflected the existence and growth of investor confidence in the Hungarian economy.
At the event, Tibor Tóth, CEO of the Budapest Stock Exchange, emphasised that the BSE – a key player in the domestic capital market for the last 35 years – could build on excellent foundations. As he explained, further increasing the liquidity of the BSE was a priority for the new management, which aimed to strengthen investor confidence and promote the development of domestic companies.