Here’s how one of the biggest news site was bought in Hungary: the relative of the bank’s president got a loan for the purchase

According to Magyar Nemzet Online, one of the members of the media group which has bought Origo has received money from the funds of the Growth Supporting Programme (GSP), from György Matolcsy’s National Bank of Hungary (MNB), revealed the companies’ registry court papers.

The sister company of New Wave Media Ltd., the New Wave Production Ltd. which has bought the online news site Origo, and also manages VS.hu, has received a 500 million HUF loan from the funds of the National Bank of Hungary (MNB). The company had access to the loan through the NHB Bank which is owned by György Matolcsy’s cousin, Tamás Szemerey, through another company.

This is interesting, because people have long been gossiping about the possible buyer, and many suspected that it was Tamás Szemerey.

Heti Válasz has started to unravel the mystery behind the purchasing of Origo in August, and this was the first time Szemerey’s name came up. The newspaper named New Wave Production Ltd. which operates VS.hu as a possibly buyer, but in the end New Wave’s another company, New Wave Media Ltd. purchased the website. According to the companies’ papers, both enterprises are owned by the Czech Bawaco Invest s.r.o., but are linked to Slovakia through its parent company.

Cink.hu has already suspected in 2013 that György Matolcsy’s billionaire cousin is behind the company, because the Samorin Jan Nagy is Szemerey’s business partner in several trans-border companies. Also, he was Nagy’s employee at the BK-Konzult Slovakia s.r.o., and Nagy was also on the list of the richest Hungarian people with an estimated wealth of 12.5 billion.

Several other facts point to Szemerey’s direction. The New Wave Production Ltd.’s headquarter is located in a building that is owned by Szemerey’s brother, Zoltán Szemerey, through the Mava Befektetési Tanácsadó Ltd., and the New Wave companies’ bank accounts are managed by the NHB Bank.

Magyar Telekom has announced last Thursday that they have signed an agreement with New Wave Media Ltd. about the selling of their share in Origo, which is worth €13.2 million (approximately 4.2 billion HUF). The purchase is expected to be finalized in the first quarter of 2016, and leaves out certain business activities. Index.hu was informed a couple of days ago that VS.hu and Origo will not merge into one site.

based on an article of mno.hu

Copy editor: bm

Source: mno.hu