Hungary backs IBRD capital increase

Finance Minister Mihály Varga assured Franciscus Godts, Executive Director at the Board of the World Bank Group, of Hungary’s support for a capital increase for the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), in a meeting on Monday.

The World Bank Group approved the capital raises for the IBRD and the IFC this past spring, but talks on the raises are still ongoing in the group’s member states, the finance ministry said in a statement.

The capital increases require the support of 80 percent of the group’s shareholders.

Hungary’s approval of the capital increases, the amendment of the IBRD’s Articles of Agreement and the subscription of shares requires the consent of parliament, the statement said.

The funding needed for the capital increase has been earmarked in the 2019 budget, they added.

Varga and Godts also discussed the IFC’s new institutional strategy. The minister noted that the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary have asked the IFC to assign an expert to central Europe who is well versed in the region and can help with business development in the Visegrad Group countries.

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Source: MTI