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Hungarian National Bank provides new documents to prosecutors in asset management probe
The Hungarian National Bank (MNB) has provided the prosecution with new documents and information regarding a controversial securities loan transaction attempted during the final days of former Governor György Matolcsy's term.
The transaction, concluded on February 28, 2025, aimed to transfer the ownership of Optima Befektetési Zrt.—a key manager of the Pallas Athéné Domus Meriti (PADME) Foundation's assets—to a private equity fund managed by Quartz Asset Management. The new MNB leadership intervened to reverse the deal and filed a criminal complaint in April 2025.
The PADME Foundation and its manager, Optima, have managed approximately 500 billion HUF in public funds. The State Audit Office reported in March 2025 that opaque investment structures linked to these entities caused losses of roughly 150 billion HUF. The investigation, which involves the Central Investigative Prosecutor's Office, is examining potential fraud, breach of trust, and misuse of documents.
Entities
György Matolcsy · Hungarian National Bank · Optima Befektetési Zrt. · Pallas Athéné Domus Meriti Foundation · Quartz Asset Management
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how well corroborated each claim is across sources.
- [● 2 SOURCES] The State Audit Office uncovered serious deficiencies in asset management and filed reports in March 2025. www.forbes.hu · hirklikk.hu
- [● 3 SOURCES] The MNB handed over documents to the prosecution regarding a securities loan transaction attempted during the previous leadership. www.forbes.hu · hirklikk.hu · nepszava.hu
- [○ 1 SOURCE] The attempted transaction was concluded on February 28, 2025, during the final days of György Matolcsy's term as governor. nepszava.hu
- [○ 1 SOURCE] Optima Investment Zrt. managed nearly 500 billion HUF in public funds. hirklikk.hu
- [● 3 SOURCES] The new MNB leadership prevented a transaction intended to transfer assets from Optima to Quartz Asset Management and filed a criminal complaint in April 2025. www.forbes.hu · hirklikk.hu · nepszava.hu
- [○ 1 SOURCE] Opaque investment structures caused losses of approximately 150 billion HUF. hirklikk.hu