Opinion of the European Central Bank of 27 May 2025 on the composition of the decision-making bodies of the Magyar Nemzeti Bank, the treasury accounts managed by the Magyar Nemzeti Bank and the permitted activities of foundations established by the Magyar Nemzeti Bank (CON/2025/12)
Date: 2025-05-27
Institutions: European Central Bank
Subjects: legal basis

ECB-PUBLIC 

EN 

OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK 

of 27 May 2025 

on the composition of the decision-making bodies of the Magyar Nemzeti Bank, the treasury 

accounts managed by the Magyar Nemzeti Bank and the permitted activities of foundations 

established by the Magyar Nemzeti Bank 

(CON/2025/12) 

Introduction and legal basis 

On 14 May 2025 the European Central Bank (ECB) was informed by the Hungarian Ministry of the National 

Economy of draft amendments to (1) the Law on public finance 1 (hereinafter the ‘Law on public finance’); 

and  (2)  the  Law  on  the  Magyar  Nemzeti  Bank  (MNB)2  (hereinafter  the  ‘Law  on  the  MNB’),  hereinafter 

together referred to as the ‘draft amendments’. 

The ECB’s competence to deliver an opinion is based on Articles 127(4) and 282(5) of the Treaty on the 

Functioning of the European Union and Article 2(1), third indent, of Council Decision 98/415/EC3, as the 

draft  amendments  relate  to  the  MNB.  In  accordance  with  Article 17.5,  first  sentence,  of  the  Rules  of 

Procedure of the European Central Bank, the Governing Council has adopted this opinion. 

1. 

Purpose of the draft amendments 

1.1  According  to  the  explanatory  memorandum  accompanying  the  draft  amendments,  the  primary 

objective  of  the  draft  amendments  is  to  enable  the  MNB  to  perform  its  basic  central  bank  and 

statutory tasks as efficiently as possible.  As a part  of this objective,  it is considered necessary to 

reduce the activities of the MNB that fall outside [the scope of] its statutory tasks. 

1.2  Composition of the MNB’s decision-making bodies 

1.2.1  Under the Law on the MNB, the bodies of the MNB are the Monetary Council, the Financial Stability 

Council,  the  Executive  Board  and  the  Supervisory  Board.  The  Monetary  Council  is  the  MNB’s 

supreme  decision-making  body,  and  the  scope  of  its  competence  includes,  inter  alia,  strategic 

decisions  concerning  the  MNB’s  tasks  relating  to  monetary  policy,  banknotes  and  coins,  official 

foreign exchange and gold reserves, foreign exchange operations and the collection and publication 

of statistical information4. The Law on the MNB currently provides that the Monetary Council is to 

have at least five and at most nine members, comprising the Governor and the Deputy Governors of 

the MNB and other members elected by the National Assembly for six years. The combined number 

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4  

Az államháztartásról szóló 2011. évi CXCV. törvény, published in Magyar Közlöny 2011/164. 
A Magyar Nemzeti Bankról szóló 2013. évi CXXXIX. törvény, published in Magyar Közlöny 2013/158. 

Council Decision 98/415/EC of 29 June 1998 on the consultation of the European Central Bank by national 
authorities regarding draft legislative provisions (OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42, ELI: 
http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec/1998/415/oj). 

Article 9(1) of the Law on the MNB. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
ECB-PUBLIC 

of  the  Governor  and  Deputy  Governors  of  the  MNB  must  be  less  than  the  number  of  Monetary 

Council  members  elected  by  the  National  Assembly.  Moreover,  the  number  of  Monetary  Council 

members elected by the National Assembly must be less than twice the combined number of the 

Governor and Deputy Governors of the MNB5. 

1.2.2  The  Executive  Board  of  the  MNB  is  responsible  for  implementing  the  decisions  of  the  Monetary 

Council and of the Financial Stability Council, as well as for managing the operations of the MNB 6. 
The members of the Executive Board are the Governor and Deputy Governors of the MNB7.  The 

Law on the MNB currently provides that the MNB is to have at least two and at most three Deputy 

Governors8. 

1.2.3  According  to  the  draft  amendments,  the  MNB  will  have  at  least  two  and  at  most  four  Deputy 

Governors,  and  the  number  of  members  of  its  Monetary  Council  will  be  at  least  five  and  at  most 

eleven.  The  explanatory  memorandum  clarifies  that  the  increase  of  the  maximum  number  of 

members of the Monetary Council is due to the possibility to appoint a fourth Deputy Governor, i.e. 

to ensure that the number of Monetary Council members elected by the National Assembly continues 
to  exceed  the  combined  number  of  the  Governor  and  Deputy  Governors  of  the  MNB,  thereby 

maintaining the ratio set out in the Law on the MNB as it currently stands. 

1.3  Treasury accounts managed by the MNB  

1.3.1  The  Law  on  public  finance  currently  provides  that  the  Hungarian  State  Treasury  disposes  of  a 
Hungarian forint (HUF) account at the MNB called the single HUF treasury account, and the Treasury 
may hold single foreign currency treasury accounts 9. The MNB is to pay interest to the central budget 

on  the  current  balance  of  (1)  the  single  HUF  treasury  account  at  the  market  interest  rate  but  not 
exceeding the central bank base rate; and (2) the single foreign currency treasury accounts at the 

market interest rate, with due regard to the prohibition of monetary financing when determining such 

rate10. 

1.3.2  The draft amendments entitle the Hungarian State Treasury to hold other foreign currency accounts 

and custody accounts at the MNB; the latter are to be used for the separate management of funds 

in  connection  with  the  statutory  custodial  activities  of  the  Treasury.  In  accordance  with  the  draft 

amendments, the  MNB  is to pay  interest to the central budget also on the current balance of the 

other foreign currency treasury accounts at the market interest rate, with due regard to the prohibition 

of monetary financing when determining such rate. 

1.4  Permitted activities of the foundations established by the MNB 

The Law on the MNB currently provides that in line with its tasks and primary objective, the MNB 

may  establish  a  business  association  in  which  it  has  a  majority  holding  or  may  establish  a 

5  
6  

7  
8  
9  
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Article 9(3) of the Law on the MNB. 
Article 12(1) of the Law on the MNB. For a detailed description of the role of the Monetary Council and the Executive 
Board of the MNB, see paragraphs 1.5 and 1.6 of Opinion CON/2024/5. All ECB opinions are published on EUR-
Lex. 

Article 12(2) of the Law on the MNB. 
Article 11(1) of the Law on the MNB. 
Article 77(1) of the Law on public finance. 

Article 145 (2)-(3) of the Law on the MNB. 

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ECB-PUBLIC 

foundation 11.  The  draft  amendments  add  that  the  MNB  may  not  establish  asset-management 

foundations,  and  the  foundations  established  by  the  MNB  must  not  carry  out  investment,  asset 

management activities or other financial transactions as an economic activity. This provision is not 

to apply to foundations established before the entry into force of the draft amendments. 

2. 

Duty to consult the ECB on the draft amendments 

2.1  The Hungarian Ministry of the National Economy has informed the ECB about the draft amendments 

‘for full transparency’ and asked the ECB to provide comments on them, should it wish to. The draft 

amendments were submitted to the Hungarian National Assembly by its Committee on Economics. 

2.2  Under Articles 127(4) and 282(5) of the Treaty and Article 2(1) of Decision 98/415/EC, the authorities 

of Member States must consult the ECB on any draft legislative provision that falls within its fields of 

competence.  

2.3  Under  Article  3(1)  of  Decision  98/415/EC,  the  authorities  may  set  the  ECB  a  time  limit  for  the 

submission of its opinion, which may not be less than one month from the date on which the President 

of  the  ECB  receives  notification  to  this  effect.  Article  3(2)  of  Decision  98/415/EC  allows  for  the 

reduction  of  the  time  limit  in  cases  of  extreme  urgency,  the  reasons  for  which  must  be  stated. 

Furthermore, in accordance with Article 4 of Decision 98/415/EC, the ECB should be consulted at an 

appropriate  stage,  which  enables  the  authority  initiating  the  draft  legislative  provision  to  take  the 

ECB’s opinion into account before it decides on the substance. This implies that national procedures 

should ensure that the consultation takes place at a point in the legislative process which affords the 

ECB sufficient time to examine the draft legislative provisions and to adopt its opinion12. 

2.4  The ECB reiterates that the draft amendments fall within the ECB’s fields of competence under Article 

2(1),  third  indent,  of  Decision  98/415/EC,  as  they  concern  a  national  central  bank  (NCB)  in  the 

European  System  of  Central  Banks,  in  this  case,  the  MNB.  Since  the  draft  amendments  were 

proposed by a parliamentary committee, the ECB invites the Hungarian National Assembly to take 

note of the obligation to consult the ECB on the draft amendments 13. 

3. 

Observations on the draft amendments 

3.1  The  ECB  takes  note  of  the  increase  in  the  number  of  Deputy  Governors  of  the  MNB  and, 

consequently,  the  number  of  members  of  the  Monetary  Council  of  the  MNB  under  the  draft 

amendments. 

3.2  The  ECB  welcomes  that  the  draft  amendments  provide  that  the  interest  paid  by  the  MNB  to  the 

central budget on the current balance of the other foreign currency treasury accounts cannot exceed 

market rates, and that when setting the interest rate for these accounts the MNB will have due regard 

to the prohibition of monetary financing. The ECB refers in this respect to Decision ECB/2014/8 of 

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13  

Article 162(2) of the Law on the MNB. 
See section 5.1. of the Guide to consultation of the European Central Bank by national authorities regarding draft 
legislative provisions (April 2025). 

See paragraph 2 of Opinion CON/2014/54. 

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the  European  Central  Bank14,  which  sets  out  the  criteria  applied  by  the  ECB  regarding  the 

remuneration of government deposits by NCBs for the purposes of monitoring compliance with the 
monetary financing prohibition laid down in Article 123(1) of the Treaty 15. Regarding the reference to 

custody accounts held with the MNB for the separate management of funds in connection with the 

statutory custodial activities of the Treasury, the ECB understands that the funds credited to these 

accounts are not remunerated. 

3.3  Taking particular account of the scope, number and size of the foundations established by the MNB 
over  time,  the  ECB  welcomes  that  the  draft  amendments  restrict  the  permitted  activities  of 

foundations established by the MNB. 

This opinion will be published on EUR-Lex. 

Done at Frankfurt am Main, 27 May 2025. 

[signed] 

The President of the ECB 

Christine LAGARDE 

14  

15  

Decision ECB/2014/8 of the European Central Bank of 20 February 2014 on the prohibition of monetary financing 
and the remuneration of government deposits by national central banks (OJ L 159, 28.5.2014, p. 54, ELI: 
ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec/2014/303/oj). 

See also paragraph 2.3 of Opinion CON/2024/5. 

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