Economy 12 August 2025, 9:58am

Government decree on Hungary's new state bank published

Portfolio

On Monday night, a draft law that had previously been submitted for public consultation was published in the Hungarian Official Gazette. This law creates the operational framework for the new state bank, the Kisfaludy Tourism Credit Centre Limited Liability Company (KTH Zrt.).

According to Minister Márton Nagy, the aim of the tourism bank is to promote the further development of tourism. At the beginning of February, he also revealed that

the first tourism loan programmes would be launched in autumn and that applications would be submitted through the Tourinform office network.

Let's see the details!

The new bank, Kisfaludy Tourism Credit Centre Ltd (KTH Zrt.), provides loans to tourism sector operators, including the following types of company:

accommodation service providers;
catering businesses,
and tourist attraction operators.

The draft legislation provides loans for the development of tourist areas for the following purposes:

real estate development and expansion;
asset development and expansion;
improving sustainability;
addressing labour issues;
stock maintenance,
improving sales.
promoting digitalisation.

The loans will be HUF-based, with a maximum maturity of 5 years, an annual interest rate of 3% and the following amounts:

HUF 10 million for the KTH Start Loan programmes,
HUF 25 million for the KTH Midi Loan programmes, and
HUF 100 million for the KTH Plus Loan programmes.

According to the plan, the loans will be backed by a state guarantee. KTH Zrt. will pay a guarantee premium of 2.0% per annum.

When the plans were first revealed, some tourism sector stakeholders were optimistic about the Economy Ministry's intentions. In early February, Tamás Flesch, the Continental Group's Managing Director, said that "the specifics of the sector often conflict with the requirements of bank risk management, so there is a strong need for a specialised bank that understands the industry and can meet its financing requirements."

In an interview with Portfolio, László Krisán, CEO of KAVOSZ Zrt., said that the tourism sector receiving such a high level of attention is a welcome announcement. He added that it makes economic sense for a government to distribute subsidies unevenly, with certain areas receiving additional resources based on sound economic reasoning. He believes that creating a dedicated bank and specific financing could help industry players exploit the potential of tourism.

Cover image (for illustration purposes only): Getty Images