Hungarian government to buy Budapest Airport below market value?

The Hungarian government has made an offer to buy Budapest Airport below market value. The airport’s value was 38 million euros in 2019.

Last summer, Dániel Jellinek, a businessman close to NER, tried to buy the airport, with no success. After this, the Hungarian government announced that they wanted the state to hold shares in the airport and wished to start the nationalisation of it.

László Palkovics said that it would be best if the state was not only a regulator, the owner of development resources and strategy maker, but also the owner of the airport in order to raise the standards of the service, writes 444.hu.

“We would make a reasonable offer to buy the airport. If this is not possible in this form, then we would like to restore the ownership of the majority holdings of the Hungarian State.”

The Budapest hub’s owners are aware of the various tactics with which the government is trying to force them into selling their shares, Bloomberg found out. Pandemic funds and permits to develop the airport were blocked in the past, and the government criticised how the airport is run. No wonder that the government wants to take ownership of Budapest Airport, as it is key to tourism and economic development.

75% of the airport was given up for concession in 2005 during the Gyurcsány-era, with the remaining 25% sold during Orbán’s leadership.

Source: bloomberg.com, 444.hu