Former Governor of Hungary's Central Bank György Matolcsy Arrested on Fraud Charges
György Matolcsy, former governor of Hungary's National Bank and a close ally of Viktor Orbán, was arrested on Wednesday morning, suspected of economic fraud and money laundering.
Matolcsy Arrested Following Investigation by Budapest Court of Auditors
György Matolcsy, former governor of Hungary's National Bank and one of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's closest collaborators, was arrested on Wednesday morning, according to Cotidianul.ro. He is suspected of economic fraud that generated substantial financial damage, with investigators imposing seizures on funds and financial securities exceeding 300 million dollars.
Matolcsy headed the Central Bank for 12 years, after Orbán first appointed him Minister of Economy and then, in 2013, governor of the institution. In 2019 he was reconfirmed for a second term, which he completed in March last year.
During his terms in office, the bank established several foundations with the stated purpose of promoting financial education. Through these entities, over 990 million euros were transferred from the institution's accounts. The foundations did not belong to the state administration, which made the use of the money difficult to track and control. Meanwhile, the former governor's son became spectacularly enriched.
In 2025, Hungary's Court of Auditors published a detailed report in which serious irregularities regarding the Central Bank's financial management were flagged. Matolcsy publicly rejected the document's conclusions, describing the report as insulting.
His reaction did not halt the investigation's course. The police and prosecution office in Budapest opened a wide-ranging investigation, which resulted in his arrest on Wednesday. The facts at issue include money laundering, alongside the principal charge of economic fraud.
Over the 12 years leading the bank, Matolcsy maintained that one of the institution's central missions was to support the economic policy of Orbán's government. Together with the former prime minister — in fact, the serving prime minister at that time — he promoted what the two called "unorthodox policy", aimed at accelerated economic growth. The expected results did not materialise, but instead the irregularities accumulated over the years of his term came to light.
Source: Cotidianul.ro