What’s happening? Half a Hungarian county could end up in foreign hands
The number of asset management foundations in Hungary has surged, and the latest one, the Harmony Asset Management Foundation, has been established by a Belgian-born billionaire family that owns a significant portion of Somogy County – meaning that the fate of half a county could soon lie in the hands of a foreign-rooted organisation.
By the end of November, the number of mainly foreign-led asset management foundations in Hungary had reached 105, and the most recently registered organisation, the Harmony Asset Management Foundation, deserves particular attention.
Its founders are members of a billionaire family whose economic empire covers a substantial part of Somogy County, writes Menedzsment Fórum.
The rise of asset management foundations
In recent months, the establishment of asset management foundations has accelerated sharply. At the end of July, the 95th foundation was set up; by September the number had reached 98, and by early October it had exceeded 100.
On 21 November, the 105th foundation – the Harmony Asset Management Foundation – was created by Christophe Claessens and his wife, Katalin.
According to court documents, the goal is clear: to preserve and maintain, in the long term, the assets placed into the foundation by its founders, and to use the resulting income to ensure the financial security of the primary and secondary beneficiaries across generations.
A family with Belgian roots
The Claessens family is well-known in Somogy County. With Belgian roots and activities spanning several branches of agriculture, the family has been purchasing land and building an agrarian empire in the region since the 1990s.
The history of the Claessens Group began in 1995 with the purchase of the successor company of the South Somogy State Farm, and since then they have accumulated land through successive auctions.
One branch of the family – led by Peter and Johan Claessens – possessed assets worth 32.4 billion forints in 2022, making them the 55th wealthiest in Hungary. Their activities primarily involve dairy farming and feed production, and in 2022 they received nearly 3 billion forints in rural development funding.
The foundation in question, however, was established by the other branch of the family, Christophe Claessens and his wife. Their company group is engaged in pig farming and feed production, and they have also received billions of forints in funding, mainly for agricultural investments.
Billion-forint turnover, steady profits
Their largest company, Csicsó Pig Kft., generated a turnover of 11 billion forints this year, with a net profit of 2.5 billion. In previous years, it consistently produced annual profits of 1–2 billion forints, ensuring ample reserves to fund the foundation.
According to the company group’s website, Csicsó Farm has become one of the region’s largest agricultural enterprises. They grow most of the required fodder on their own land, purchasing the remainder from local farmers. Their pig farms are continuously expanding, offering several varieties to meet customer demand.
Why are these foundations so popular?
The asset management foundation model, introduced into law by the Orbán government in 2022, is particularly attractive to billionaires.
Virtually anything – cash, real estate, shares, companies – can be placed into such a foundation, provided the assets are worth at least 600 million forints. This comes with extensive legal guarantees and exceptionally favourable taxation. It is no surprise that it took barely three years to reach 105 foundations.
Could the future of Somogy County lie in foreign hands?
Since numerous Somogy-based farmlands, livestock operations and agricultural companies now fall under the ownership of the Harmony Asset Management Foundation, this organisation could shape the region’s economic landscape for generations.
The question is therefore clear: what happens when the economic power of half a county becomes concentrated in the hands of a foreign-rooted billionaire family’s foundation?
And what happens when most of a country’s productive capacity is in foreign hands (German, Chinese, US, etc.)?
I thought the EUians were bonded together now that Brussels is now 70% muslim, they will be banning anything to do with bigs,, but how dare they move to hungary who will veto the ban, unless the Tiza guy gets in and the country will fall in line with the rest of the EU and only hungarians can make that happen.
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