Hungarian banks freeze retail fees to counter inflationary pressures
Hungarian banks have said they will comply with a request by the National Economy Ministry to bring down retail account fees.
MBH Bank, the runner-up in the local banking market, said it would cut its retail account and bank card fees by around HUF 1.5bn, level with the inflation-linked increase effective 30 April, and pledged to freeze those fees until 30 June 2026. MBH Bank has over 2 million retail clients.
K&H Bank said it would waive an inflation-linked retail account fee increases in force from 1 April in the framework of a promotion until 30 June 2026. Fees in the promotion will be level with those at the start of 2025, it added. UniCredit Bank said it would counter its retail account and bank card fee increases rolled out on 1 March and would keep fees unchanged until the end of June 2026.
Erste Bank Hungary said it pledged not to raise its retail account or bank card fees until 30 June 2026. The lender noted that it had not raised those fees in 2025. Raiffeisen Bank said it would cut its retail account fees by the same degree as the inflation-linked increase for 2025. CIB Bank said it would refund its retail clients an inflation-linked fee hike and keep its fees unchanged through 30 June 2026.
OTP Bank, Hungary’s biggest commercial lender, said after talks between the National Economy Ministry and the Hungarian Banking Association that it was prepared to freeze retail account and bank card fees until 30 June 2026. The lender said it would counter inflation-linked fee increases for retail clients introduced on 1 March by extending discounts worth several billion forints, and reducing their banking costs by close to HUF 2 billion in the twelve months starting 1 May.
Banking association: Lenders play part in bringing down inflation
Hungary’s banking sector is committed to the sustainable financing of the national economy and will play a part in bringing down inflation, the chief secretary of the Hungarian Banking Association said on Wednesday, responding to questions by MTI.
Levente Kovács said the association’s representatives had met on a number of occasions with the heads of the National Economy Ministry and the National Bank of Hungary. The sides agreed that Hungary’s financial system is strong, banks’ capital position is stable, and the system has ample liquidity, he added.
On the basis of the government and the central bank’s request, the association asked its members to review some of their banking fees, on a voluntary basis, and offer clients preferences, Kovacs said. Banks have since announced freezes and preferences affecting retail accounts and bank cards, he added.
Banks that have already rolled out inflation-linked fee increases will counter those with rebates, in the billions of forints, while lenders have pledged to keep fees unchanged until 30 June 2026, he said. Lenders also agreed to waive fees for no-frill retail accounts until headline inflation drops under 4% (the upper threshold of the central bank’s tolerance band) for three months in a row, he added.
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