Hungary probes $17 bn National Cultural Fund scandal, arrests officials

Hungarian authorities are investigating the National Cultural Fund (NKA) after more than 17 billion forints in subsidies were allocated without merit. Six individuals were detained on June 23, including former NKA deputy head Bús Balázs, members of the board that decided the distribution, and senior staff of the fund’s managing agency.

Investigations by the National Tax and Customs Administration revealed that at least 178 million forints in Csongrád‑Csanád County alone went to organisations linked to the ruling Fidesz party, with similar sums identified in neighboring counties, totalling roughly 900 million forints directed to Fidesz‑affiliated groups. Former culture and innovation minister Hankó Balázs called for solidarity with those arrested, asserting that they acted in good faith and did not seek personal enrichment.

The scandal has sparked criticism that the NKA has become a patronage tool for politically connected cultural actors, prompting calls for legal scrutiny and reforms of the fund’s oversight mechanisms.