Budapest Business Journal: Latest Issue

Christmas Shopping

Advent Basilica Fair

Celebrates its 15th Anniversary

Budapest’s stunning annual Christmas markets have officially opened their gates, with new amenities and holiday attractions, as tourism in Hungary is, once again, at an all-time high.  11

New Book Collates

Artist’s ‘Visual Diaries’ “Budapest Safari,” a new anthology of images of the city and other places from travels by the Hungary-based artist Marcus Goldson, has just been released. The book reflects his time living in Budapest, where he has been creating images of the city since the 1990s.  18

József Kordás Returns

With new Gallery

Budapest has a new gallery, a few steps from Ráday utca, dedicated to the work of the painter József Kordás. After nearly two decades of self-imposed retreat, the artist is back with roughly 30 new canvases, while several earlier, iconic works are also on free public view.  21

Digital, Caring and Communityminded

As Penny Hungary nears 30, CFO Silke Janz discusses the challenges of retailing in an environment of persistent inflation and cautious consumer sentiment, responding to sustainability issues, and plans to celebrate its anniversary next year. 7

Investment in Hungary

Continue to Decline, but Rate is Slowing

For more than three years, investment has been declining in Hungary; however, the latest data suggests that the pace of deterioration has slowed. Total investments decreased by 0.3% in Q3 compared to Q2.  3

German Business Climate Survey: No Quick Upswing

Companies in Hungary do not expect a notable economic recovery in the coming year, according to the latest survey by the German-Hungarian Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DUIHK), presented on Nov. 11.  8

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Robin Marshall

EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTORS: Luca Albert, Balázs Barabás, Éva Bodor, Zsófia Czifra, Kester Eddy, Bence Gaál, Gergely Herpai, David Holzer, Gary J. Morrell, Nicholas Pongratz.

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THE EDITOR SAYS

IN HOPE OF HUNGARIAN INDUSTRIAL INVESTMENT

Hungary continues to attract near record levels of FDI. At the start of this year, the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency reported that investment capital inflows into the Hungarian economy had exceeded EUR 10 billion for the second year in a row. The figures for 2025 won’t be officially published for a few weeks yet, but recent deals hint at continued good news.

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Why Support the BBJ?

• Independence. The BBJ’s journalism is dedicated to reporting fact, not politics, and isn’t reliant on advertising from the government of the day, whoever that might be.

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• Value Creation. We have a nearly 30-year history of supporting the development of diversity and sustainability in Hungary’s economy. The fact that we have been a trusted business voice for so long, indeed we were the first English-language publication when we launched back on November 9, 1992, itself has value.

• Crisis Management. We have all lived through a once-in-a-century pandemic. But we also face an existential threat through climate change and operate in a period where disruptive technologies offer threats and opportunities. Now, more than ever, factual business reporting is vital to good decision-making.

For more information visit budapestbusinessjournal.com

In mid-November, the American consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble announced that capacity expansion, research and development (a regular theme nowadays as Hungary moves from pure manufacturing towards value-added roles), and employee training all formed part of a nearly EUR 200 million investment program the firm is launching at its sites in Gyöngyös and Csömör. A couple of days earlier, Mercedes-Benz announced an R&D project at its factory in Kecskemét, the first time the firm has chosen Hungary for one of its highest value-added investments. The EUR 54.4 mln project will strengthen the site’s strategic role within the German automaker’s global production network. Within the business services sector, there were 120 service centers in Hungary in 2019, employing around 55,000 people. The 2025 survey registered 245 centers with nearly 120,000 employees. Hipa said earlier this month that it is currently negotiating 15 new projects. Since 2014, the agency says it has supported 116 BSC investments, creating more than 22,000 new jobs. Internationally, there can be no doubt that Hungary is doing a good job attracting investment. Domestically, the picture is less rosy, as our Macroscope report on page three makes clear. Investments in Hungary fell by 4.1% in Q3 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, based on seasonally adjusted data, while the total value of investments decreased by 0.3% compared to Q2 2025, according to the latest investment report from the Central Statistical Office. Looking at the first three quarters as a whole, investment decreased by 5.4% in 2025. Indeed, investments

have fallen in 12 of the 13 quarters since the 2022 election, based on adjusted data. While the decline in investments has lasted for more than three years and has not yet ended, the pace of the decline has slowed significantly recently, suggesting that the slump may be bottoming out.

As one of the analysts we quote described it, the sluggish rate of GDP growth underlines how manufacturing industry is suffering, and it will not want to expand capacity or develop technology while order levels are low. Presenting the latest results of its now biannual investor sentiment survey, the German-Hungarian Chamber of Industry and Commerce underscored that view. Vice chairman Achim Weinstock stressed that there is no indication of a rapid or noticeable upswing in business performance. “The balance of positive and negative responses remains close to zero, signaling a stabilization of the economy at a quite low level rather than a meaningful recovery,” he notes in our report on page eight. Hungary’s economy will only start to accelerate meaningfully when domestic players are happy to invest in their future again. Speaking at the presentation of the German chamber survey results, Ákos Kozák, of the Equilibrium Institute, warned that he sees the medium-term growth prospects as limited by low labor productivity and a narrowing workforce pool. Some positive impetus may come from EU-funded investment sources, gradually recovering consumer confidence and ongoing industrial developments, particularly in automotive and battery manufacturing. But even then, risks remain regarding global trade tensions, fluctuating energy prices and demographic constraints. Is Hungary ready to turn a corner in 2026? Let’s hope so. A meaningful peace deal in Ukraine wouldn’t hurt, either.

Robin Marshall Editor-in-chief

THEN & NOW

Photo by

In the 1948 black-and-white photo from the Fortepan public archive, St. Stephen’s Basilica solemly stands on Szent István tér in Budapest’s District V, captured in the early years of post-war reconstruction. In the modern image from Nov. 22, 2025, the basilica’s façade is illuminated with a celebratory light projection marking the 120th anniversary of its consecration, blending history and technology in tribute to one of Hungary’s most iconic landmarks.

Noémi

Bruzák / MTI

Photo by Gyula Hámori / Fortepan

1News •

macroscope

Investments in Hungary Continue to Decline, but Rate is Slowing

For more than three years, investments have been declining in Hungary; however, the latest data suggests that the pace of deterioration has slowed.

ZSÓFIA CZIFRA

Investments in Hungary fell by 4.1% in the third quarter of the year compared to the same period in 2024, based on seasonally adjusted data, while the total value of investments decreased by 0.3% compared to the second quarter, the latest report on investments released by the Central Statistical Office (KSH) shows.

Looking at the first three quarters as a whole, investments decreased by 5.4% this year, which, while negative, is at least an improvement compared to last year’s 14.2% decline.

Investments have decreased in 12 of the 13 quarters since the 2022 election, based on adjusted data. While the decline in investments, which has lasted for more than three years, has not yet ended, the pace of the decline has slowed significantly recently, suggesting that Hungarian investment performance may be approaching its lowest point.

KSH did not release comprehensive details in the first estimate and will publish the breakdown by technical composition and economic form only a week from now. The statistical office only highlighted that the transport and warehousing and manufacturing sectors contributed to the decline, while the financial field moderated it.

“This is not surprising, the weakness of external demand directly affects industry and related sectors, where it pushes back demand, which results in uncertain prospects and significant free capacities, which negatively affects the willingness to invest and encourages

National Economic Investment in Hungary 2002-2025 (Q1-3)

decision-makers to wait and see,” says Dániel Molnár, senior analyst at GFÜ Gazdaságkutató.

Significant Influence

According to Molnár, transport and warehousing and manufacturing accounted for 40% of investments in the first half of the year. The weight of other areas, excluding real estate transactions, is much smaller, and the timing of each investment and development can significantly influence the data.

Molnár believes that elements of the Demján Sándor Program may have mitigated the extent of the decline in investments. The investment loan products of the Széchenyi Kártya Program have been available since February at an interest rate of 3%, while the payments of the so-called “1+1 Program” only started in the third quarter, but the effects of the loans provided by Eximbank may already have appeared. However, the senior analyst adds, the withholding of EU funds may continue to have a negative effect, and may have set back state and local government developments, while the role of investments postponed in recent years due to budgetary constraints should also be mentioned.

patterns also show that there is no price pressure in the economy, and the strengthening of the forint exchange rate is gradually being passed on to consumer prices.

Positive Developments?

“Looking ahead, there are also positive developments: inflation is expected to fall below 4% in December, which may be followed by a significant slowdown in January due to base effects, which could lead to an inflation rate close to, or even below, the inflation target in the first months of the year. However, the timing of the elimination of the margin freeze and high inflation expectations may have justified maintaining a tight monetary policy,” Molnár says.

He does not foresee monetary conditions changing this year. There is no expected shift in the international environment that could lead to a reinterpretation of the policy from its current orientation. At the same time, continued tightening strengthens investor confidence in the forint, and thus helps anchor expectations.

Source:

It is certainly encouraging that the pace of investment decline seems to be slowing from quarter to quarter, comments ING chief economist Péter Virovácz on the fresh data. He thinks there is a chance the decline has bottomed out. Even so, there are few positives on the corporate side: manufacturing industry is suffering, as it does not want to expand capacity or develop technology while order levels are low.

Last week also saw the October ratesetting meeting of the Monetary Council of the National Bank of Hungary. In line with analysts’ expectations, the council kept the base rate unchanged at

6.5%.

Market watchers unanimously believe that monetary conditions will probably not be eased again this year. The key rate has been anchored at its current level since September 2024.

According to Molnár of GFÜ, inflation has been a relatively good news story in recent months. It stagnated at 4.3% for the fourth month in a row, while consumer prices were unchanged on a monthly basis for the third consecutive month. Although the annual index continues to be held back by the government-mandated retail price caps, monthly repricing

“Looking ahead, there are also positive developments: inflation is expected to fall below 4% in December, which may be followed by a significant slowdown in January due to base effects, which could lead to an inflation rate close to, or even below, the inflation target in the first months of the year.”

“We expect an interest rate cut to take place only next year, provided that inflationary processes continue to ease and expectations are moderated, while the external environment improves and investors’ risk appetite increases, for example, due to the conclusion of the Russian-Ukrainian war,” Molnár summarizes.

“This would allow the central bank to ease interest rate conditions without jeopardizing the sustainable achievement of the inflation target due to a weakening exchange rate or the credibility that is improving due to a tight monetary policy,” he adds.

According to Erste Bank analyst János Nagy, the MNB’s latest rate decision did not bring anything new in its accompanying messaging and communication.

“The cautious and patient approach remained, and there is still no sign that the Monetary Council would have the easing of conditions on the agenda in the coming period, not even if we see numbers around or below the mediumterm target in early 2026. Any changes are only expected after the elimination of regulatory measures,” Nagy says.

Ukraine

Hungary Urges EU to Back Latest U.S. Peace Plan on Ukraine War Roundup Crisis

Hungary’s government has been emphatic that the European Union must support a peace plan for Ukraine. Devised by the United States and Russia, it has likely been put forward now due to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s compromised position following revelations of the worst corruption scandal under his leadership.

added that, in his view, “Brussels and the European leaders don’t have an interest in approving it.”

Work of Witkoff and Dmitriev?

Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó told Kossuth Rádió on Sunday, Nov. 23, that the peace plan represented a tremendous opportunity to end the RussianUkrainian war, which has been a strain on the entire European economy, including Hungary’s.

“Therefore, based on humanity and common sense, all European political leaders should support it,” he insisted.

Upon first hearing of the peace plan, on Friday, Nov. 21, Szijjártó said it brought hope for peace “and clearly proved” that U.S. President Donald Trump “will continue to do everything in the interest of peace and will not give up his efforts.”

Had European leaders not impeded Trump’s earlier peace efforts, Szijjártó said, there might already have been peace in Ukraine.

“So, we now firmly call on European leaders not to obstruct American peace efforts,” the Hungarian foreign minister said.

Speaking in Brussels on Monday, Nov. 24, Szijjártó said the situation “will only get worse” if “the pro-war European leaders” undermine the peace plan, which “is a major chance” for peace to return to Central Europe finally. Yet, the foreign minister

One reason might be that they had no part in conceiving it, he suggested, and neither did Ukraine. The original 28-point peace plan leaked to the press last week appears to be the work of Donald Trump’s special envoy for peace missions, Steve Witkoff, and Vladimir Putin’s representative, Kirill Dmitriev.

That said, the American contribution to the proposal might be overblown.

According to the British weekly news and current affairs journal

The Economist, analysis by artificial intelligence revealed it had likely been translated from Russian.

These origins would make sense, as the document reads like a wishlist of Russian demands. Ukraine would be required to relinquish territory in the contested Donbas region that Russia has yet to conquer, designate Russian as a second state language, and reinstate the local branch of the Russian Orthodox Church, which had been banned as a tool of Kremlin propaganda and espionage. Ukraine’s military would be reduced to a fraction of its current manpower and prohibited from retaining certain weapons, such as long-range systems capable of striking Moscow or St. Petersburg, with no reciprocal concessions required of Russia. Western troops would be barred from entering Ukraine, and a constitutional

amendment would preclude NATO membership. Ukraine would depend on an American security guarantee, ostensibly based on NATO’s Article 5, but without its military integration. The agreement in its original form would see Western sanctions lifted, and Russia welcomed back into the G8, both of which Szijjártó underlined as being in Hungary’s interest. Yet other European leaders may take issue with Russia’s frozen assets, currently intended for reparations, being diverted to a new fund for joint AmericanRussian projects, while Europe foots a USD 100 billion bill for Ukraine’s reconstruction, and America claims half the profits from these projects and a stake in Ukraine’s gas infrastructure. Since the original peace deal was leaked, European, Ukrainian, and U.S. negotiators have worked to make the offer more balanced.

Politically Sensitive Sidestep

Speaking to the Financial Times, Ukraine’s First Deputy Foreign Minister, Sergiy Kyslytsa, who attended weekend talks in Geneva, said the latest plan consisted of just 19 points, with some of the most politically sensitive elements, including territorial concessions, now due to be decided by the leaders themselves.

Ukrainians would usually see these demands as non-starters. However, Zelenskyy is currently in the throes of the worst corruption scandal since he took office. The Ukrainian presidential

office suspects the timing of the peace plan suggests the corruption crisis is being used to coerce Ukraine into unreasonable concessions.

Ironically, Zelenskyy’s second most significant scandal took place several months ago, when the president tried to curb the powers of the anti-corruption authority that uncovered the current scheme, triggering mass protests that forced him to back down. The National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) subsequently revealed that government officials had embezzled at least USD 100 million from Ukraine’s nuclear energy company Energoatom.

While the scandal risks greater cynicism amongst Ukrainians and increased desertion amongst soldiers, it has also made it more difficult for Ukraine to justify the support it desperately needs for the war effort. Although the investigation demonstrates that the country is making strides towards greater accountability, countries already skeptical of providing support, such as Hungary, see it as a reason to cease further support.

“It is truly shocking that, while it has come to light that a war mafia in Ukraine is pocketing the money of European people, God only knows exactly where, instead of ordering an audit or suspending further payments, the president of the [European] Commission suggests we send even more money,” Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said in a post on his Facebook page. “This is like trying to wean an alcoholic off drinking by sending them another crate of vodka,” he added.

NICHOLAS PONGRATZ

In a photo released by the Prime Minister’s Communications Department, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán talks with participants of an EU summit via video conference from his official offices in the Carmelite Monastery on Nov. 24, 2025.

Photo by Zoltán Fischer / Prime Minister’s Communications Department / MTI

CTP Concludes 80,000 sqm BTS Deal at CTPark Budapest-Erd

CTP has concluded an 80,000 sqm BTS deal with a major international firm for the establishment of a logistics hub at CTPark BudapestErd, close to the M0 Budapest orbital motorway. CTP began work on the BREEAMaccredited logistics and industrial park on a 70-hectare site in District XXII in January. The new facility is scheduled for delivery in the first quarter of 2027.

“This enables the company to consolidate its operations into a single, large-scale modern facility, designed to meet its specific

Real Estate Matters

A biweekly look at real estate issues in Hungary and the region

requirements. The park’s location provides easy access to skilled labor and urban infrastructure. The recently signed landmark deal of 80,000 sqm and the first phase’s 75,000 sqm GLA is a clear indicator of strong pre-let interest in the sub-market from occupiers, seeing opportunity in high-quality industrial and logistics space,” says CTP.

All buildings at the park, situated some 19 km southwest of the center of the capital, will incorporate the latest sustainability technologies. Energy efficiency features will include

thermal insulation, LED lighting, and PV panels supporting longterm sustainability. Green facades will enhance biodiversity and elevate the park’s design, according to CTP.

In a separate deal, iLogistic, now part of GLS but continuing to operate under its own brand name, has signed a long-term lease agreement for an additional

5,000 sqm

at CTPark Budapest West in Biatorbágy (21 km west of central Budapest). The company now operates across 15,500 sqm. This continuous

expansion is driven by the dynamic growth of e-commerce and increasing customer demands.

30-fold Increase

This latest expansion at Budapest West represents a 30-fold increase since the company’s launch in 2018, when it began operations in the park with just 500 sqm. iLogistic’s core business is providing fulfilment solutions for e-commerce companies, full-scale logistics services for online retailers, including warehousing, order management, and delivery.

The company’s growing client base and the continuous expansion of order volumes have created a need for additional space, prompting CTP to prepare a development that includes premium office functions, the company says.

According to CTP, more than two-thirds of new leases every year are with existing clients choosing to expand across its business park network. The firm is the largest listed owner, developer, and manager of logistics and industrial space in Europe, with 13.5 million sqm of assets as of this summer, according to its figures.

In Hungary, CTP operates 16 parks totaling around 1.1 million sqm of stock with a further 180,000 sqm of pipeline under development. All new developments are constructed to at least BREEAM “Very Good” accreditation standards.

Optimism Returns to CEE as Investment Surges Past EUR 7 Billion

Confidence is steadily returning across CEE real estate markets, with investor sentiment shifting from cautious optimism to pragmatic execution, according to the latest insights from the CEE Investment Scene Q1-Q3 2025 publication by Colliers.

GARY J. MORRELL

The region continues to demonstrate resilience and opportunity, supported by moderating inflation, solid household consumption, and strong employment levels. Investment volumes across the CEE-6 (Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia) exceeded EUR 7 billion in the first three quarters of 2025, a 38% year-on-year increase. The forecast for the year is EUR 10.7 bln. The majority of capital flows were directed to the Czech Republic and Poland, together accounting for more than 70% of total activity. Hungary

and Slovakia also recorded strong rebounds, with the investment volume for the former tripling year-on-year, according to Colliers.

“Geopolitical risks persist, yet the region is increasingly viewed as one of opportunity. Bulgaria’s forthcoming Eurozone entry and recent rating upgrades have boosted sentiment, while Hungary and Romania benefit from strong logistics and manufacturing bases. Czechia and Slovakia maintain stable institutional profiles, and Poland continues to lead in both scale and liquidity,” the research adds.

Hungary offers a yield premium on the established Central European markets. Colliers puts Prague yields as the lowest

in the CEE region at 5.25% for office, 5% for industrial, and 6% for shopping centers. This compares to Budapest with office at 6.5%, industrial at 6.75%, and shopping centers at 7%.

Visible Recovery

Signs of recovery were already visible for Hungary in the first half of this year, including the sale of the Budapest Marriott Hotel. Total investment volume could reach EUR 700 million-800 mln this year, effectively doubling the 2024 figure.

Still, commercial real estate investors are seeking stability, and geopolitical volatility and regional uncertainties may continue to affect transactions for the remainder of this year. It is hoped that the upward momentum will not be disrupted by the parliamentary elections scheduled for spring 2026

in Hungary. Historically, property investors tend to pause and wait to see the direction of the new government

during such periods, says Balázs Zelles-Görgey, head of capital markets at Colliers Hungary.

Looking ahead, Colliers expects a gradual but steady recovery over the next 12 months as pricing expectations align and financing remains accessible. The combination of solid economic fundamentals, pragmatic pricing, and expanding domestic liquidity is set to drive further investment activity through 2025 and beyond.

With its competitive fundamentals, robust occupier demand, and deepening capital base, Central and Eastern Europe continues to stand out as one of Europe’s most compelling real estate investment destinations.

“Investors are returning with sharper focus, selective strategies, and growing confidence in the region’s long-term fundamentals; CEE is no longer viewed through a purely risk-based lens,” concludes Grzegorz Sielewicz, head of economic and market insights for CEE at Colliers.

GARY J. MORRELL

CTPark Budapest West in Biatorbágy.

Sanofi Budapest Hub Wins Hipa’s ‘Best BSC Investor of the Year’ Award

Sanofi’s investments in Budapest and its long-term commitment to Hungary were recognized by the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency, the Association of Business Services Leaders in Hungary, and the American Chamber of Commerce in Hungary at the annual Business Services Hungary conference with the “BSC Investor of the Year” award in the business service center category.

specialist areas, supporting the company’s operations, improving business processes, and accelerating drug development.

The Sanofi Budapest Hub, which has expanded significantly this year, goes beyond traditional service center activities to coordinate multiple

Sanofi has significantly expanded its Budapest office this year to support future growth and provide its employees with modern, stateof-the-art equipment, communal spaces, and services. Today, an office complex with a floor area of 15,000 sqm in the Váci Greens Office Park provides a stimulating, ergonomic working environment for the nearly 2,000 employees of Sanofi Budapest Hub. The plan is for the center’s headcount to reach 2,200 employees by 2026.

“We are honored and delighted that Hipa has chosen Sanofi Budapest Hub as ‘Investor of the Year’ in the service center category. I believe this recognition is a testament to Sanofi’s long-term commitment,” says Ahmed Ismail, head of Sanofi’s European service centers.

“The community at our Budapest center is diverse both professionally and culturally, as evidenced by the fact that 69 nationalities are represented, while three-quarters of the employees are Hungarian. This award recognizes the talent of our outstanding professionals and confirms that we are on the right track,” Ismail adds.

The Sanofi Budapest Hub has become a vital pillar of the company’s global operations. Thanks to its multidisciplinary

Digital Payment Index Continues to Rise, Future Depends on Coordinated Education

Mastercard’s Digital Payment Index continued its upward trajectory in 2024, reaching 63 points out of 100, a onepoint increase from the previous year. The rise reflects both market-led developments in digital payment infrastructure and improvements in the regulatory environment.

BENCE GAÁL

Over the past five years, the DPI has increased by 12 points. The annually compiled metric relies on consistent methodology, drawing from public data sources, Mastercard’s internal research, and expert interviews to assess the digital maturity of the economy. The latest report shows that while the “Infrastructure” and “Usage” pillars strengthened, “Knowledge” continues to lag.

The “Infrastructure” pillar rose to 79 points, reflecting gradual progress driven by the broadening of payment channels. Terminal coverage remains patchy, however, with about half of the relevant businesses not accepting cards. The service sector, in particular, remains under-terminalized.

Cybersecurity indicators were formally added to the infrastructure assessment

in 2024. The cashless infrastructure score fell from 86 to 77, but this was due to the inclusion of stricter criteria, such as real-time fraud monitoring and AI-based scoring, rather than any deterioration in performance.

The “Usage” pillar improved to 55 points, driven by broader adoption of standard digital solutions. Contactless acceptance reached nearly 99%, and digital transfers initiated from bank accounts climbed to 91%. Card purchases outnumbered ATM withdrawals, though cash still accounts for more than one-third of transactions. A third of Hungarians still receive part of their income in cash, while 9% rely exclusively on cash income, limiting the complete uptake of digital tools.

Mobile wallet transactions grew by six percentage points due to Google Pay

integration, raising tokenized wallet payments from 23% to 29%. Online transactions also saw increased use of stored card credentials.

The Role of Instant Payments

Instant payments continued to play a significant role: more than 220 million such transactions took place in 2024, up 12% year-on-year. Their combined value reached roughly HUF 62 trillion, marking 22% annual growth.

structure, it uniquely combines financial, human resources, procurement, digital, medical technology, manufacturing and supply, and R&D support functions. In 2023, the company launched its global transformation program to make Sanofi a world-leading R&D-driven, AI-powered biotech company. To this end, Sanofi reorganized and centralized its operational processes within its Business Operations units. Hubs in Barcelona, Bogotá, Budapest, Hyderabad and Kuala Lumpur play a key role in Sanofi’s global operations. Through its centralized, data-driven, and digitized operations, the Budapest Hub directly contributes to shortening the drug development process, enabling patients to access life-saving or qualityof-life-improving innovative therapies sooner, the pharma firm says.

Sanofi in Hungary

Sanofi employs more than 2,200 people in Hungary across pharmaceutical manufacturing, commerce, clinical trials, and business services. Its domestic commercial, medical, and sales center, with nearly 200 employees, offers innovative therapeutic solutions in immunology, vaccines, diabetes, and rare diseases. In Csanyikvölgy (near Miskolc, some 192 km northeast of Budapest by road), nearly 400 employees have been producing life-saving medicines since 1986. The Sanofi Budapest Hub has been growing dynamically in terms of staff and scope of activities since 2019.

The “Knowledge” pillar was unchanged at 54 points, and is the most challenging area for development. The report highlights a digital divide shaped by educational and income disparities. People aged 30–49 performed best on knowledge tests, while lower-income and lowereducation groups lagged. Concerns about fraud and heightened media attention have made the public more cautious, underscoring the need for coordinated education and cybersecurity efforts.

“The five-year rise of the Digital Payment Index presents a positive picture of Hungary’s financial digital transition; at the same time, its sub-data also identifies the areas where further work is needed to ensure future growth,” says Gergely Márkus, country manager for Mastercard in Hungary and Slovenia.

“There are strong professional reasons for the need for coordinated and targeted efforts in education to maintain continuous development, as this is essential to close the gap visible in the ‘Knowledge’ subindex,” he says.

“In all areas of the digital payment ecosystem, priority must be given to supporting the groups that lag in knowledge, in part due to the cybersecurity risks that have a major impact on protecting the ecosystem’s extremely high level of trust capital,” Márkus adds.

István Joó, CEO of Hipa (left) and Ahmed Ismail, head of Sanofi’s European service centers.

2 Business

Penny Hungary at 30: Digital, Caring, Community-oriented

Silke Janz, CFO of Penny Magyarország, tells the Budapest Business Journal about the challenges of retailing in an environment shaped by persistent inflation and cautious consumer sentiment, the 2024 results and the likely picture for 2025, how the chain responds to staffing and sustainability issues, and plans to celebrate its 30th anniversary in the country next year.

recognized their quality and reliability and continue to choose them even as market conditions improve. In categories affected by the margin cap, we have adapted our category management and promotional strategy accordingly. The narrowing price gap between branded and private-label products has also influenced purchasing decisions in these segments.

BBJ: How did 2024 turn out, and what are the expected business results for this year? Are you happy with Penny’s brand equity in Hungary?

Silke Janz: 2024 was a year that truly tested the agility and resilience of the retail sector. At Penny, we faced significant market and regulatory challenges once again, yet managed to maintain stable profitability and stay true to our core promise: keeping everyday essentials affordable for Hungarian families. Despite the turbulent environment, we achieved turnover of EUR 1.35 billion, representing an increase of around 5% compared to the previous year.

BBJ: How challenging is the market environment with inflation still relatively high? And how is the regulatory environment affecting your business in 2025?

SJ: The Hungarian retail environment continues to be shaped by persistent inflation and cautious consumer sentiment. Although inflation has eased slightly, purchasing power and confidence remain fragile. Households plan their spending more carefully, focus on essentials, and pay close attention to value and promotions. Private labels remain one of our strongest growth drivers. While many customers initially chose them as a more affordable option, they have since

BBJ: How easy is it to find staff? What do you do to promote employer and employee branding?

SJ: The retail sector, being laborintensive, faces significant workforce challenges. This is not unique to Penny, yet we take an active role in addressing it. Our response includes process optimization, digitalization, and flexible work arrangements across our headquarters and logistics centers for our blue- and white-collar employees. Through automation and digital tools, we make everyday work more efficient and less administrative. For example, new transport software enables smarter route planning and automated processes, reducing office workload by around 15%. We have also moved toward a paperless logistics environment, cutting paper use by more than three million sheets in three years. These steps create a more sustainable and cost-efficient workplace while supporting long-term employee motivation. We also place strong emphasis on employer branding and communication. We actively showcase what it’s like to work with us, especially on platforms our target audiences use, to provide a transparent and engaging view of everyday life at Penny. This helps us attract new talent while strengthening internal pride and engagement among our existing teams.

our offer, committed to quality, and consistently delivering value for money. Our celebrations will reflect the easy, caring, and community-oriented spirit that has defined us for three decades.

BBJ: How are you introducing digital innovation to your Hungarian stores and operations?

SJ: Digitalization is a critical transformation driver. Today, 73 selfcheckout systems operate across Penny stores, making shopping faster and more convenient while allowing staff to focus more on customer service. We continue to invest in innovations that enhance both efficiency and experience.

In logistics, digital solutions are improving precision and sustainability across all stages, from goods reception to delivery. Route planning and automated tracking systems ensure faster, more reliable operations, while GPS-based cold chain monitoring safeguards product quality. We are also introducing electric delivery vehicles, reducing our environmental footprint and supporting long-term efficiency. For us, technology is about simplifying daily work and enabling our colleagues to focus on what truly matters: serving our customers.

BBJ: Sustainability is another key topic. What is Penny doing to make its stores and operations more sustainable and energy efficient?

BBJ: Penny’s “Beyond People” scheme is a complex, company-wide program to strengthen its position in the labor market. How does this work in practice?

SJ: It is an employer-strengthening initiative that prepares Penny for the future of work. It focuses on what the labor market will need in the years ahead, from digitalization and new competencies to generational diversity, work-life balance, and flexible working models. The program aims to make Penny an even more attractive and forward-looking employer, where people and business success grow hand in hand. As part of our efforts, it is a source of pride for us that we were again ranked as a most favored retail employer by Top Employers 2025. We measure success through clear KPIs, including employee satisfaction and fluctuation rates. The program also covers internal communication, influencer engagement, flexible benefits, and talent development. Our goal is to extend and personalize benefits, allowing colleagues at all levels to tailor them according to their preferences. We also plan to implement a comprehensive talent management program in 2026, building clear development paths and succession plans across sales, logistics, and HQ departments.

BBJ: The first Penny store opened its doors in Szentes on June 6, 1996. How do you plan to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Penny Magyarország in 2026?

SJ: The 30th anniversary is a remarkable milestone, a moment to celebrate together with our employees, customers, and partners. Throughout the year, we are planning both internal and public events that capture what Penny stands for: being close to people, unique in

SJ: Sustainability is an integral part of our strategy. All new and renovated stores meet our Green Standard, combining cost-efficiency with environmental responsibility. We have significantly reduced CO₂ emissions and gas consumption in recent years, introduced solar panels in dozens of stores and logistics centers, and installed electric charging stations in many parking lots. Energyefficient LED lighting, CO₂ refrigeration systems, and improved insulation further help us reduce our footprint. Penny has, for the third time, received the Energyefficient Company Award, and we actively participate in national sustainability programs, including the “Girbe-Gurba” food rescue initiative, and cooperation with the Hungarian Food Bank Association.

BBJ: Finally, what are the targets for Penny’s annual Christmas charity fundraising campaign, and where will the money go?

SJ: Supporting local communities is, for us, a year-round commitment. Throughout the year, we work closely with our longstanding partners, the Hungarian Red Cross and SOS Children’s Villages, to help families in need through fundraising campaigns, donation drives, and volunteer programs. During the Christmas season, these efforts take on a special significance, as we once again join forces with our customers and employees to bring a little extra care and joy to those who need it most. Additionally, we support the SOS Children’s Village by contributing HUF 10 million towards children’s mental health therapy sessions. We also encourage employee-driven donation campaigns, further extending our commitment to social responsibility and well-being. We believe that giving back is part of who we are, as a company and as individuals.

ROBIN MARSHALL

Silke Janz, CFO of Penny Magyarország

German Chamber Fall 2025 Business Climate Survey: No Quick Upswing

Companies in Hungary do not expect a notable economic recovery in the coming year, according to the latest survey by the German-Hungarian Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DUIHK), presented on Nov. 11.

DUIHK has been conducting these regular business surveys every year since 1994 and made them biannual in 2017, providing a long-term perspective on trends in the Hungarian economy. In fall 2025, more than 240 participants, German and Hungarian businesses as well as other foreign companies in Hungary, shared views on their own business expectations and on key risks to their operations.

A unique feature of the study is the “AHK World Business Outlook,” a simultaneous survey of the global network of German chambers, which enables comparisons of Hungary’s business climate with those of other economies worldwide.

Presenting the latest results, the DUIHK’s vice chairman, Achim Weinstock, stressed that there was no indication of a rapid or noticeable upswing in business performance.

“The balance of positive and negative responses remains close to zero, signaling a stabilization of the economy at a quite low level rather than a meaningful recovery,” he noted

Indeed, both the assessment of the current situation and the 12-month expectations stayed at or just exceeded the results of previous surveys since the beginning of 2024. The chamber attributed this primarily to weak demand in export markets and domestically.

That lack of demand also weighs on employment and investment plans. While one in five companies still plans to hire additional workers next year, almost as many will probably reduce staff, particularly among larger, export-oriented manufacturers. Investment intentions are similarly subdued: only 24% foresee an increase, while 34% plan to cut back capital expenditures.

These figures place Hungary in the lower mid-range compared to the business sentiment in other Central and Eastern European countries, Weinstock said. He referred

to the “AHK World Business Outlook,” conducted and published simultaneously with the survey in Hungary.

Regional Comparisons

According to the latest WBO, companies in markets such as the Czech Republic, Romania and Bulgaria reported more optimistic business expectations and stronger employment plans, while others, such as Slovakia and Slovenia, face similar problems to Hungary.

The diverging trends in regional economies partly refute the frequently heard assertion that only the weakness of the German economy is responsible

for Hungary’s disappointing economic situation, Dirk Wölfer, the author of the local study, said. The Czech Republic is even more dependent on the German market than Hungary, but still shows a much better economic performance.

A highly revealing comparison of economic conditions across countries can be drawn from the answers to the question of the most critical business risks. In Hungary, 68% of companies named lack of demand as an important risk, but labor costs were ranked second, at 52%.

Companies are not so much concerned about the nominal level of labor costs in Hungary, still among the lowest in Europe, but rather about their surge in recent years, Wölfer explained. In the last five years alone, labor costs in Hungary have risen by 71%. In the Czech market, the pace was only 25%, and in Germany, just 20%. Among the 61 countries surveyed worldwide, Hungary’s labor cost risk was the fifth-highest.

According to the survey, companies expect an average wage-cost increase of 6.2% in 2026, but the planned doubledigit increase in minimum wages could further increase pressure.

More than a quarter of companies plan to offset rising wage costs through rationalization measures, such as automation or digitalization. Among industrial companies, nearly 40% will apply such measures, underscoring competitive pressure in internationally exposed sectors.

Policy Risk

The third most important risk in Hungary was the economic policy framework, with 42% seeing it as a threat to their business. Hungary is not alone in this: in 48 of the 61 countries surveyed, economic policy ranked among the top three risks, in many cases even ahead of weak demand.

In contrast, legal uncertainty seems to be a much more prominent issue in Hungary than in many other countries. Here, it was named a risk by almost one in three companies, compared with only 19% worldwide. In CEE, only two countries reported a figure as high as Hungary.

Providing the broader economic narrative, Ákos Kozák from the Equilibrium Institute placed Hungary’s outlook within the wider European context and offered a longterm view of the characteristics of the Hungarian economy.

He warned that Hungary’s GDP growth in 2025 may fall short even of 1%. Kozák sees the medium-term growth prospects limited by low labor productivity and the narrowing workforce pool. Nonetheless, some positive impetus may come from EU-funded investment sources, gradually recovering consumer confidence and ongoing industrial developments, particularly in automotive and battery manufacturing.

But even then, risks remain regarding global trade tensions, fluctuating energy prices and demographic constraints.

The complete analysis of the DUIHK’s Hungary survey, the global “AHK World Business Outlook” and Kozák’s presentation can be found on the German chamber’s website.

News Company

Samsung SDI Commits to Jobs, Wages for HUF 133 bln in State Support

Samsung SDI has made significant long-term commitments to the Hungarian state in exchange for HUF 133 billion in support, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said in response to a question from Telex. Among the conditions is that the company will maintain production at its Göd site (30 km north of Budapest) with a base workforce of at least 3,308 employees through 2038. Citing a list of individual government decisions from the Ministry for National Economy, Telex reported that Samsung SDI will invest HUF 955 bln to expand its factory at Göd. While the state does not require job creation in return for the subsidy, Samsung SDI has contractually committed to continuing operations with 3,308 employees, paying them a total of HUF 668 billion in wages by the end of 2038, with an average monthly salary nearing HUF 900,000. Although the Ministry of Finance did not specify which expansion the support applies to, the investment is expected to

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be completed by the end of 2028, and likely concerns the second Göd plant expansion, which began in 2023.

Most Firms Say AI Cuts Costs, Speeds Decisions: SAP Hungary

A majority of corporate users are satisfied with artificial intelligence, viewing its adoption as a worthwhile investment, with the most frequently cited benefits being faster processes and more confident decision-making, SAP Hungary said on Nov. 20. According to a company survey, more than 80% of employees consider AI useful, particularly for cutting costs, especially at larger firms. Some 90% of companies with more than 250 employees reported that AI accelerates workflows and enhances decision-making, delivering measurable financial gains. Just 14% of surveyed mid- and senior-level managers said they do not use AI, while the remainder are increasingly deploying more sophisticated, personalized, and integrated solutions. The adoption rate among large companies now exceeds 40%, the statement said. The survey was conducted in summer 2025 and included responses from 387 mid- and senior-level corporate managers.

Harro Höfliger Invests HUF 6 bln in Expansion at Debrecen

Germany’s Harro Höfliger, which makes machinery for the pharmaceutical industry, inaugurated a HUF 6 billion (EUR 15.64 million) capacity expansion at its base in Debrecen (233 km east of Budapest by road), creating more than 100 jobs, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said on Nov. 21. According to state news agency MTI, the minister noted that the site is the company’s second biggest outside Germany. A HUF 1.5 bln government grant supported the investment, Szijjártó said. The company will launch a significant supplier development program, so local small- and mediumsized enterprises will also benefit from the investment, according to the minister. It will closely cooperate with the University of Debrecen and the local vocational training center in training young people, he added.

4iG, MTel Wins HUF 48 bln in EU Gigabit Funding

2Connect Telecommunications, part of the 4iG Group, has secured HUF 24.4 billion in European Union funding to support upgrades to gigabit infrastructure, 4iG said in an announcement published

on the website of the Budapest Stock Exchange. The funds can be accessed over a three-year period in line with the pace of the development works. Seperately, Magyar Telekom has secured around HUF 13.5 billion in European Union funding through tenders to support its gigabit network investments, the company said in a press release on Nov. 19, which are expected to provide gigabitcapable infrastructure to more than 80,000 access points by the end of 2028.

MBH Acquires 80% Stake in Otthon Centrum, Eyes Full Ownership by 2028

MBH Bank, Hungary’s secondlargest commercial lender, has agreed to acquire an 80% stake in real estate brokerage Otthon Centrum from a unit of Biggeorge Holding, according to a press release. The bank plans to purchase the remaining 20% stake in 2028, subject to certain conditions. The transaction, which excludes Otthon Centrum’s operations in Poland, is expected to close in Q1 2026, subject to regulatory approval. Otthon Centrum operates over 200 offices nationwide and employs 1,400 brokers and 500 financial advisors. MBH Bank said the acquisition “completes” its “home financing ecosystem,” following its earlier purchase of home savings institution Fundamenta Lakáskassza.

Heineken Hungária Net Zero Production Program Wins Award

The Business Council for Sustainable Development in Hungary has named Heineken Hungária’s decarbonization program among its “For a Sustainable Future Award” winners.

The company won the award in the business solutions and climate protection and adaptation category for the technology at its brewery in Sopron (about 186 km west of Budapest) that is estimated to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by more than 1,400 tonnes per year.

The BCSDH is a community of more than 150 CEOs working together to accelerate the green transformation of the economy towards a renewable, sustainable future.

Heineken Hungária says that sustainable and responsible operations

are among its most fundamental strategic principles. As part of this, its Sopron brewery is switching to a partially renewable heat energy supply, thereby contributing significantly to the company’s 2030 goal to reduce carbon emissions from direct operations and purchased energy to net zero.

Dutch-based brewing company

Heineken NV’s Net Zero Production program pursues the same goals on a global level; the Sopron unit is one of its pioneering breweries where implementation is already underway.

Heineken is working with Siemens on several international, longterm energy projects. As part of this

partnership, an energy recovery system has been installed that recycles waste heat generated during beer brewing in the fermentation tanks back into the packaging plant, where it is used for heating rather than steam from a natural gas-fueled power plant.

High-performance

As part of the investment, a highperformance heat pump system has been installed, using 12.8 GWh of thermal energy extracted from the fermentation process to produce hot water, thereby decarbonizing the entire packaging process.

As a result of the investment, Heineken Hungária’s brewery in Sopron

is estimated to have reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 37% by 2025 compared to the 2022 base year.

“Our brewery in Sopron, which is celebrating its 130th anniversary this year, was one of the first Heineken breweries to enter the implementation phase of decarbonization investments, which are essential for achieving our sustainability goals,” says Nikos Zois, managing director of Heineken Hungária.

“This large-scale, multi-year project clearly demonstrates that our sustainability investments, which form the basis of our strategy, are deeply embedded in our business activities and operational processes,” he says.

Sopron Brewery at 130 Sopron Brewery is celebrating its 130th anniversary in 2025. Founded in 1895 by entrepreneur Samu Lenck, the brewery overcame early resistance from local winemakers, survived two world wars, nationalization, shortages, and shifting economic systems. By the 1950s, significant developments had revived production. A new chapter began in 2003 with its integration into the Heineken group.

Swedish Chamber Celebrates 30th Anniversary in Hungary

Founded in 1995, and thereby marking its 30th anniversary this year, the Swedish Chamber of Commerce in Hungary says it has become a network of companies and professionals committed to sustainable business, innovation, and ethical values.

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“As we celebrate our 30th anniversary, we reflect on the mindset that drives the success of Swedish companies, both in Hungary and around the world. Swedish businesses have demonstrated that lasting success is rooted in values such as trust, transparency, inclusiveness, and long-term thinking,” says Márta Böddi, the director of the SCCH. These principles, combined with continuous innovation and a strong sense of social responsibility, remain key to resilience and competitiveness, she says. The chamber serves as

a professional platform where members can connect, share knowledge, and grow together, whatever their background.

As part of “Team Sweden” in Hungary, SCCH works with the Embassy of Sweden and the Svenska Institutet (Swedish Institure) to strengthen the visibility of Swedish companies, Böddi notes.

“Advocacy is a central focus of our work. We engage in policy dialogue and build relationships with decisionmakers in both the public and private sectors. Often in partnership with the Embassy of Sweden, the EU Chambers, and other business chambers, we promote the interests of our members and help facilitate new opportunities,” she explains.

Building on a Legacy

“We are grateful for the partnerships, trust, and community that have brought us this far, and we look forward to building on this legacy in the years to come,” Böddi adds.

The chamber officially marked its stepping into its fourth decade with an event hosted by the Swedish Embassy on Thursday, Nov. 14. SCCH also launched a dedicated anniversary publication, a collection of stories, achievements, and reflections from three decades of Swedish–Hungarian collaboration. Speaking at the event and reflecting on the pamphlet, Ambassador of Sweden to Hungary, Diana Madunic said,

“For me, this publication represents much more than a historical review. It shows what Sweden stands for in practice: trust, equality, long-term thinking and cooperation. But it also shows how these values are translated into concrete development here in Hungary.”

Roland Jakab, the president of the Swedish chamber, added, “This publication fills me with pride. I’m proud of what our members have achieved here in Hungary over the past 30 years, and how much they’ve contributed to the country’s economic growth.”

The anniversary celebration featured several keynote speakers, including Katarina Bjelke, director general of the Swedish Research Council, who spoke about the strength of the Swedish innovation system. Irén Márta, managing director of the Business Council for Sustainable Development in Hungary, discussed sustainability in times of crisis, reminding guests that it is no longer an abstract concept, but essential to business’ ability to succeed.

A panel discussion led by György Nagy (vice president of SCCH, and country manager at Sigma Technology Hungary), Ákos Erdős (CEO, Paprika Studios), Dávid Illés (managing director, Volvo Hungária Kft.), Péter Szatmári (Hipa), and Péter Tóth (head of commercial for Hungary, Bulgaria, and Kazakhstan at Electrolux) reflected on how these concepts can be implemented in real-life business practices.

BENCE GAÁL

From left: Irén Márta, director of BCSDH; Nikos Zois, CEO of Heineken Hungária; Attila Chikán Jr., president of BCSDH; and Peter Roebben, CEO of K&H Bank.

“Team Sweden” celebrates 30 years of the SCCH.

3 Special Report

Christmas Shopping

Advent Basilica Celebrates 15th Anniversary, Tourism Rates on the Rise

Budapest’s stunning annual Christmas markets have officially opened their gates, with new amenities and holiday attractions, as tourism in Hungary is, once again, at an all-time high.

Although finalized statistics have not yet been published for Hungary’s 2025 tourism sector, partial data for the first three-quarters of the year already show a rise in both domestic and international visitors compared to 2024. According to the Hungarian Central Statistical Office (KSH), “the number of domestic and international guests arriving at tourist accommodation establishments [between January and September] was 2.2% and 11% higher than in the same period of the previous year.”

In 2024, Hungary saw roughly 18 million guests across all seasons: 2025 statistics show that the number of visitors had already passed the 15 million mark by September. Combined with the fact that “Budapest Airport will offer passengers 8.9 million seats in this year’s winter schedule, 12.5% more than in the previous winter season,” an increase in the overall number of visitors in Hungary is expected by the end of the calendar year.

Holiday attractions throughout the city play a significant role in drawing in visitors in the winter months. Advent Basilica has secured a place in European tourism history twice in the past two years. It is the only Christmas market to have been named “Europe’s Best Christmas Market” four times, and was awarded the inaugural “Best Christmas Market of All Time” title in European Best Destinations’ All-Stars online publication. The annual market is the “most awarded Christmas market in Europe,” according to organizers.

New and Improved

Both the Advent Basilica market, sprawling at the foot of St. Stephen’s Basilica in downtown Budapest,

and the nearby Vörösmarty Classic Xmas, opened their wooden stalls on Friday, Nov. 14th, with added amenities compared to previous years.

A new welcome gate directs visitors towards the market, followed by a light canopy suspended above the stalls, with a light tunnel stretching towards Bajcsy-Zsilinszky utca.

The traditional projected lightshow returns, and visitors can watch light projections every half hour from 5:30 p.m. Additionally, the fair’s multimedia LED light wall now features AI-controlled, motion-sensor animations that respond to guests’ movements. Also projected on the wall will be the fair’s music program,

2025 Tourism Recap

In August, the Kisfaludy Tourism Credit Center (KTH) launched, Hungary’s first financial institution specializing in the tourism sector. The program’s primary objective is to increase investment and improve financial access for businesses contributing to the country’s tourism industry, enabling the development and modernization of tourism infrastructure, and financing investments in both real estate and equipment.

which will be complemented by a variety of live performers, including blues, indie-pop, classical, and traditional Hungarian sounds.

The fair is also celebrating the 120th anniversary of the completion of St. Stephen’s Basilica with a specially commissioned light show that takes viewers through the rich history of the iconic building.

Seasonal Gastro-weekends

Continuing a tradition first established last year, the fairs’ kitchens are once again hosting themed gastroweekends, with a different culinary motif each weekend, during which visitors can purchase specific dishes

It also helps in facilitating Hungary’s green and digital transformation by offering favorable terms for investments in energy efficiency, sustainability, and digital development.

The KTH program is set to enhance the country’s National Tourism Development Strategy 2030, which aims to make Hungary a leading tourism destination in Central Europe. The strategy’s focus areas include sports-, culture- and health tourism, as well as Meetings, Incentives,

between HUF 2,000–2,500. Items on the weekly menu reflect the cornerstones of Hungarian dining, including goulash, stews and desserts. The lineup will close with the celebration of the traditional Lentil Day on Thursday, Jan. 1, also marking the end of the market festivities. On-site online food orders and pickup will be available for the first time this year.

Items on the weekly menu reflect the cornerstones of Hungarian dining, including goulash, stews and desserts. The lineup will close with the celebration of the traditional Lentil Day on Thursday, Jan. 1, also marking the end of the market festivities.

According to Hungary Today, the average food prices at the 2025 markets are “well below inflation,” and have “only risen by 1.5% compared to last year.” Indeed, it comments that the “prices of nearly 70% of the food items remain unchanged” from 2024.

The fixed-price meal program is also returning this year; larger kitchens must offer a full-sized portion of a meal for HUF 1,600. Dishes include traditional Hungarian staples such as stuffed cabbage, sausage, and pork and sauerkraut stew.

Further winter programs in the city include one of Europe’s largest outdoor skating rinks at the foot of Vajdahunyad Castle, an immersive outdoor light exhibition at Lumina Park in the center of Margaret Island, and special light-decorated Christmas tram rides running throughout the city.

Conferences, and Exhibitions tourism, aiming to double the number of international congresses and corporate Mice events held in the country. Hungary’s goals for its tourism sector in 2026 will focus on qualitative growth contributing towards the end goal of the National Tourism Development Strategy 2030, with Visit Hungary set to host the Tourism Summit 2026, “one of the most important professional events in the tourism industry,” according to Trade Magazin.

Photo by Zoltán Balogh / MTI

LUCA ALBERT

The Advent Basilica Christmas market on St. Stephen’s Square on its official opening day on Nov. 14, 2025.

Christmas Shopping

in Brief News

Winter Farmers’ Market at Corvinus

If you need a little Christmas present inspiration, head for the Corvinus Winter Farmers’ Market on Tuesday, Dec. 2, from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in front of Building C at Corvinus University of Budapest, Közraktár u. 4-6. The market is organized by the staff of the Department of Agricultural Economics at the Corvinus University of Budapest’s Institute for Sustainable Development and is open to all. Seasonal vegetables and fruits, dairy products, fresh fruit juices, honey, cheeses, chili products, microgreens, syrups, jams and meat products await visitors. In the spirit of sustainability, bring a reusable bag and some cash, as not all vendors can accept cards. The farmers’ market has been held at the university every few months since 2023. The organizers are Gréta Maró (Ph.D. student), Áron Török (head of department) and Zalán Márk Maró (assistant professor).

Holiday opening hours at Penny

German retail chain Penny Hungary has said it will once again strive to provide its customers with a convenient and smooth

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holiday shopping experience, while also paying attention to its staff and their need for time with their families. Its stores will thus have extended opening hours in the run-up to Christmas and remain open across the country until noon on Dec. 24.

“We believe that community is the key to success, this is no different during the holiday season, which is why we strive to keep the needs of both our customers and our employees in mind,” said Eszter Kazatsay, the firm’s communications manager. From Dec. 18-20 and 22-23, all stores will have extended hours and close at 9 p.m. On Dec. 21, regular Sunday opening hours will be observed. From noon on Dec. 24 to Dec. 26, all stores will be closed. From Dec. 27-30, stores will be open according to their usual opening hours. Stores will be open until 2 p.m. on Dec. 31, and closed on Jan. 1. From Jan. 2, stores will resume normal opening hours.

Borsodi Brings Back its Mulled Beers

While mulled wine may be many people’s idea of the ideal seasonal drink, others prefer beer, and Borsodi Brewery will again tend to their needs this Christmas. Mulled Guinness, which debuted last winter and sees

Most Hungarians Plan to Spend HUF 25,000-50,000 on Christmas Gifts

Around 58% of Hungarians plan to spend between HUF 25,000 and HUF 50,000 on Christmas gifts this year, according to a national representative survey published on Nov. 20 by Erste Bank. Respondents typically allocate a similar amount for gifts for both children and adults, usually purchasing items

worth between HUF 5,000 and HUF 20,000 per person. While most finance their holiday shopping from monthly income or savings, 76% said they end up spending slightly more than planned. Some 47% of respondents intend to buy sweets or other food items, 45% toys, and 41% clothing.

the iconic Irish stout complemented with dark, spicy rum, cardamom, lemon juice and star anise, among other ingredients, is exclusively available at the Bazilika Advent Christmas market, in the Guinness

It is Possible to Live Without Good Chocolate – but it’s Certainly not Worth it…

This is the belief of Swiss Selection’s owner, Vera Schlosser, as well as the entire Swiss Selection team. Vera realized her childhood dream by opening the Swiss Selection chocolate shop in the Hegyvidék Shopping Center, never having forgotten the moment when, at the age of eleven, she first stepped into a Swiss chocolate shop. Behind the counter, countless pralines, truffles and other treats rose in little pyramid-shaped displays,

and at the height of the experience a friendly shop assistant gifted her a piece of chocolate with a magically soft and silky taste. She had never tasted anything so exquisite… The staff at Swiss Selection hope that customers who visit the shop leave with similarly lovely memories, as more and more people in Hungary now understand that there are indeed huge differences between chocolate and chocolate –and that Swiss chocolate is among

the finest in the world for a reason. The team at Swiss Selection learn the art and craft of chocolate making at the shop’s own praline courses (which are also open to anyone interested in making chocolate), enabling them to help customers with both their choices and any background information they may need. With its chocolate shop, Swiss Selection aims to bring a sweet little slice of Switzerland to Hungary.

House. Meanwhile, mulled BelleVue Kriek, introduced three years ago and flavored with cinnamon, orange, and cloves, awaits visitors in the festive hustle and bustle of Vörösmarty tér for a limited period.

Photo by

Just in Time for Christmas, Jysk Hungary Opens 102nd Store

JYSK Hungary has continued its expansion in the country, opening its 102nd store in the country in Törökszentmiklós (130 km southeast of Budapest by road) on Nov. 19. To mark the occasion, the company is supporting two local organizations through its Creating Homes donation program.

but for the entire region,” says Sándor Szimeiszter, country manager for Jysk Hungary, Austria, and Greece.

The 2024-25 financial year was the most successful yet for Danish-based retailer Jysk: its retail division achieved turnover of HUF 89.011 billion in Hungary, up 16%, while customer numbers increased by almost 10% and online sales grew by 16.4%.

The latest opening is particularly symbolic, as the firm is celebrating its 20th anniversary in Hungary this year. In addition to new stores, older shops are also being renovated in line with Jysk’s sustainability and efficiency concept.

“The opening of our 102nd store proves that we are constantly evolving and making our products available to more and more customers. We believe that the opening of the new store will create value not only for the town

Sustainability and energy efficiency are key considerations in the design of Jysk’s new stores and renovation of its older shops. A lighting system is now used that can be switched on in three separate stages, reducing energy consumption by at least 25%.

Efficiency is further enhanced by full LED lighting and the installation of motion detection systems.

Supporting Local Charity

Through its Creating Homes program, Jysk actively contributes to making the everyday lives of those in need more comfortable and homely.

to support. The winner was the Kikelet Foundation, which plans to use the HUF 500,000 donation to furnish its development rooms and nursery with new furniture, helping it to create a friendlier, more inspiring environment for children, families, and colleagues alike.

The official opening of the 102nd Jysk store in Hungary in Törökszentmiklós.

In a public vote on the Sharity online platform, Törökszentmiklós residents could choose from five local civic organizations

Jysk currently has more than 1,300 employees and 102 stores in Hungary. Its regional distribution center in Ecser (38 km east of central Budapest by road) serves stores and online orders in seven countries. The warehouse has a storage capacity of 210,000 pallets and an annual delivery capacity of approximately 568,000 cubic meters, making it one of the largest distribution centers in Europe. In Christmas-related news, the chain has announced that, for the eighth

GATHER FOR JOY

Jysk is also awarding a special prize worth HUF 250,000 to the Törökszentmiklós Nursery Association to purchase new furniture and home textiles for the interior of its kindergartens.

On the store’s opening day, the first 500 customers who spent at least HUF 10,000 were given a 70x80 cm Billerbeck pillow, and all customers received a giant shopping bag as a gift.

year in a row, it will close all its stores on Dec. 24, so that employees can spend the holiday with their families. It says the aim is to allow employees to rest and recharge after the hectic Advent period. The weeks leading up to Christmas are among the busiest times of the year for retailers, and it has become a tradition for the company not to open its stores on Christmas Eve. Jysk stores will be open as usual on Dec. 22 and 23, and will reopen on Dec. 27.

France’s ‘Notre-Dame de Paris’ Musical Comes to Budapest

There was enormous excitement in our family when we discovered that the musical institution “Notre Dame de Paris” is being performed at the Papp László Budapest Sportaréna from Jan. 8-11 next year in the original French. Buying three tickets to the show at the Papp László as a collective Christmas present was a no-brainer.

DAVID HOLZER

My wife and her daughter arrived in France to live not long after the musical premiered in 1998, and the song “Belle,” taken from it, topped the French charts for a recordbreaking 18 weeks. My wife remembers singing songs from the musical in French in the car together with her daughter as she drove her to elementary school. To this day, they know all the words to all the songs.

The musical is based on Victor Hugo’s novel “Notre-Dame de Paris,” published in 1831 and better known in English as “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.” Legend has it that, after years of prevaricating, Hugo locked himself away in his room to write the novel, leaving his clothes outside.

As I’m up against a tight deadline for this article, I’m testing Hugo’s method. I’ll report back.

Since 1998, the musical, written by Riccardo Cocciente and Luc Plamandon, has played to more than 12 million people worldwide, been performed more than 5,000 times in 20 countries and translated into nine languages. More than 11 million CDs and DVDs have been sold. The original production involves 200 tonnes of scenery that require seven trucks to move it from performance to performance.

Although architecture is the underlying theme of Hugo’s novel, lyricist Luc Plamandon has, somewhat unsurprisingly, said that the real story for him is Quasimodo’s love for Esmeralda. Like the novel, the musical is set in Paris in 1482. Gringoire, a poet, is the commentator. Quasimodo, the hunchbacked and facially deformed bellringer of Notre Dame, is in love with the beautiful gypsy Esmeralda. As are Frollo, the evil archdeacon of Notre Dame, and possibly Phoebus, Captain of the Royal Archers.

Complicating matters, Quasimodo is devoted to Frollo, who raised and educated him after he was abandoned as a baby. Esmeralda, meanwhile, is protected by Clopin, leader of the band of beggars and outcasts who gather outside Notre Dame.

A Hunchbacked Friend?

Apparently, Hugo may have befriended a hunchbacked stone carver who worked at Notre-Dame, restoring the cathedral, while he was writing his novel.

Frollo orders Quasimodo to bring him Esmeralda, but Phoebus arrests the hunchback before he can do so.

The soldier then arranges to meet Esmeralda the next night. Meanwhile, Gringoire accidentally wanders into the secret Court of Miracles, where the outcasts of Paris meet. Clopin judges that he will be hanged for trespassing unless one of the women present agrees to marry him. Esmeralda does.

Quasimodo is tied to The Great Wheel as his punishment for trying to kidnap Esmeralda. She takes pity on him and gives him a drink of water. After he’s released, he, Frollo and Phoebus sing about their feelings for Esmeralda in the song “Belle,” which became an enormous hit for the gravelvoiced Garou (the stage name for Pierre Garand, a Canadian singer and actor from Québec) as Quasimodo.

After Quasimodo takes Esmaralda into Notre Dame, explaining that it is now her home and sanctuary, she warms to him. Frollo spies on her in the cathedral, powerless over his lust for her. When

Phoebus meets Esmeralda, Frollo stabs him with her knife. She collapses, and Frollo escapes. And so endeth act one. Act two opens with Frollo explaining to Gringoire that Notre Dame is silent because Quasimodo hasn’t rung the bells for three days. Esmeralda is in prison for the murder of Phoebus, although he is not actually dead.

The soldier’s fiancée, the aristocratic, beautiful Fleur-de-Lys, forces him to order Esmeralda’s execution. Frollo visits her in prison and confesses that he stabbed Phoebus. He offers her the choice of dying on the gallows or making love with him. When she rejects him, he tries to rape her. Meanwhile, Quasimodo has freed Clopin and the other prisoners. Clopin knocks Frollo unconscious. He releases Esmeralda, and Quasimodo hides her in Notre Dame.

Sanctuary! Sanctuary!

Frollo orders Phoebus and his men to ignore the sanctuary Notre Dame offers Clopin and his followers and to attack the cathedral. Clopin is killed, and Esmeralda becomes the leader of his people. She is captured, and Phoebus hands her over to be executed before he leaves with Fleur-de-Lys.

Searching Notre Dame for Esmeralda, Quasimodo discovers an insane Frollo who shows him Esmeralda being hanged and says he’s responsible for her death.

Quasimodo throws Frollo down the stairs of the tower. After Esmeralda’s body has been cut down, Quasimodo kneels beside it and promises to stay with her even in death. Fin.

“Notre-Dame de Paris” revived musicals in France. Three songs from it were released as singles: “Vivre,” “Le temps des cathédrales,” and “Belle.” The latter was named Song of the Year in France and nominated for Song of the Century. Celine Dion and Tina Arena released an English version of “Vivre,” retitled “Live for the One I Love.” To date, the score has been recorded at least seven times. The musical launched Garou’s career as well as that of Hélène Ségara, who played Esmeralda, and went on to sell over 10 million records.

In France, “Notre-Dame de Paris” is an institution. Writing on Timeout. com, Alice Saville described it as occupying “a very, very special place in French culture. When I saw it in Paris [….] the crowd were pretty much in raptures.”

My wife says, “I’ve loved the musical for more than 20 years and listened to the songs over and over, using my imagination to picture the scene. I’m excited to see the songs brought to life onstage. I have the advantage that I know the music so well that I can concentrate on the story. I’m looking forward to spotting nuances in the plot.”

Most Definitely NOT the Disney Version

Just to set the record (if you will pardon the pun in a musicalbased article) straight, if you were wondering whether this was part of the trend of adapting Disney cartoons into stage musicals, it isn’t, although that did also happen. Walt Disney Animation Studios’ 1996 film “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (also inspired by Victor Hugo’s novel) premiered as a stage

musical in 1999 in Berlin as “Der Glöckner von Notre Dame,” with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, and a book by James Lapine. Produced by Disney Theatrical Productions, the Englishlanguage version, with a revised book by Peter Parnell, debuted on October 28, 2014, eventually closing on April 5, 2015. “Notre Dame de Paris” is not that version.

Ralph Brewster: the Would-be American who Couch-surfed

What existed on the plot now occupied by the Mammut 2 shopping mall on Margit krt? Who was Aladár Rácz? Where did László Almásy (aka the “English Patient”) live in Budapest?

WW2 Budapest

The answers to such questions lie not in some detailed, quirky, guide to Budapest, but in a republished and superbly updated memoir of life on the run in the city during World War 2.

Ralph Brewster, a descendant of one of the Pilgrim Fathers, considered himself as American as apple pie. But born in Rome and raised in Florence, his father had relinquished his US citizenship to adopt Italian nationality for himself and his family.

The young Brewster never considered himself Italian, a feeling that only grew as fascism gripped the country in his late teenage years. It didn’t help that he was gay.

The aesthete, gifted pianist and polyglot wanted out, but that could only be achieved by dint of an Italian travel document, an indignity (to him) that led to his memoir’s title: Wrong Passport.

Brewster paid for, or at least bartered, his bon vivant wandering lifestyle by teaching English, playing music and constructing horoscopes. He could clearly hold his own in good company.

But ensconced in Athens in October 1940, disaster struck; Mussolini’s Italy invaded Greece. To local patriots, he was a potential enemy, to the occupiers, he was a draft evader.

Brewster hurried north to Hungary, a country he knew from an earlier sojourn teaching at the renowned protestant school in Sárospatak, 250 kilometers northeast of Budapest.

It was also a country that, while strongly nationalist and tilting towards Nazi Germany, was thus far at peace. Alas, for Brewster, Hungary and Europe, this was only temporary. Yet in the summer of 1942, despite aiding Hitler’s invasion of the Soviet Union a year earlier, and Hungary’s declaration of war against the United States in December 1941, Budapest lived on as ever. True, Jewish families feared for their menfolk doing so-called “labor service,” which often included life-threatening duties on the eastern front, but, as Brewster writes in his opening pages: “In my second spring here [...], Budapest in 1942 was still

a gay town with nothing to remind you that a war in Europe had been on for nearly three years [...]. It was the last great city in Europe where life went on as in peacetime.”

The SS Recruiter

Well, almost. One problem with wars is that governments get jittery about spies, and Budapest certainly had its fair share of those. Brewster had personal experience, having been a target for recruitment by a certain Heinrich Berg, a German art dealer who moonlighted as an SS agent, or maybe the other way round.

Our hero several times deftly sought to decline the offer (it’s not a good idea to annoy SS employees in a country where many have Nazi sympathies), but he may have failed. Whatever, at the beginning of the book, in May 1942, Brewster’s stay in Budapest looks well and truly over: his visa expired, he faces being deported to Slovakia. Of course, this can’t happen, or we would have no book, at least not one recounting another 30 months of furtive shuffling between flats in the Hungarian capital interlaced with stays on Balaton and nights under the stars in the Buda hills.

Sure enough, Slovak border guards refuse a visa and push him back on the next train, whereupon he wangles his return to Budapest and the desperate search for accommodation safe from the prying eyes of house concierge-cum-informers really begins.

In the course of 14 chapters, we meet a grand assortment of humanity, from a Cistercian monk who believes more in reincarnation and African magic than salvation through the cross, via a Hungarian trainspotter to a one-legged Jewish shoemaker.

One of note is Aladár Rácz, a Roma, naturally from a miserable background, whose astonishing talent at playing the cimbalom (a Hungarian version of the dulcimer) allowed him to climb out of poverty to teach the instrument at the Ferenc Liszt Music Academy.

The virtuoso lived in what is today a long street in the Buda hills, now named after him. Brewster describes Rácz as “The most important person I have met in Budapest.”

Another stand-out is László Almásy, the geographer-explorer and pilot who became the inspiration for “The English Patient,” a 1996 blockbuster film based on a novel of the same name by Michael Ondaatje.

Topographical Nazi

Anthony Minghella, the British director of the movie, can be eternally grateful to Ondaatje for his artistic license: the real Almásy bore little relation to the character played by Ralph Fiennes. In fact, it is astonishing that Brewster had anything to do with Almásy at all, a Nazi seconded from the Hungarian to the German military to advise General Rommel on geography and topography for the North Africa campaign.

As Brewster writes, it was impossible to understand how Teddy (his code name for Almásy), who had been educated in Eastbourne, a seaside town in southeast England and once pro-British, could have become so virulently Nazi.

“I had never met so pathological an anti-semite as Teddy [...] I found him crazy, though it interested me to know one Nazi really well,” Brewster confesses. Teddy, by the way, lived at Bartók Béla út 29, up the road from the Gellért Hotel. It should be said that Brewster was not constantly illegal in these years, for though he claims to have had no links in high places, he somehow meets or teaches people with friends or relatives in authority who provide legal papers and, on occasion, pull him out of deep water, most notably a stinking prison near Keleti station quite early in his stay. Ironically, after witnessing both the German occupation of Hungary in March 1944 and the later Arrow Cross putsch, he flees the country for Austria legally (and only just in front of the “liberating” Soviet Army) with papers from the Italian consulate, one of the very offices he specifically shuns during his stay to avoid forced conscription into Mussolini’s military.

I hate hackneyed terms like “hidden gem,” but when it comes to Englishlanguage publications on Hungary, this cliché genuinely describes “Wrong Passport,” which made few waves in its first publication in 1954, nor, thus far, in its second life from 2022.

As publisher Annabel Barber admits, the book is very niche, really only suitable for Magyar-philes with a voracious appetite for history and knowledge of the country.

Barber herself deserves a standing ovation for what must have been hundreds of hours of research, contacting Brewster’s descendants in Italy (still in the family home in Florence) and inserting more than 100 notes to link the reader with who was who at the time and where, given the renamed streets in Budapest in the seven decades since the first edition. (I could spot only one error in its 407 pages; the train in Austria, pp 315, would have been “dashing” westwards, not eastwards, fortunately for Brewster.) Finally, the plot in District XII that is now home to Mammut 2 was once the location of the infamous Margit Prison, one that Brewster muses about, but thankfully managed to avoid.)

“Wrong Passport,” second edition: ISBN-1-905131-92-1, 407 pages, Blue Danube 2022, priced HUF 4,500, USD 19.95

Budapest, circa 1938-1944. Ralph Brewster said of the city in 1942 that “it was still a gay town with nothing to remind you that a war in Europe had been on for nearly three years [...]. It was the last great city in Europe where life went on as in peacetime.”

Ralph Fiennes made László Almásy sympathetic and famous to a late 20th-century audience, but the real man (pictured) had a much less attractive personality.

Photo by Milleflore Images / Shutterstock.com

Noël Café Cats at Chez Dodo

For our winter holiday collection, we really wanted an exciting, fresh design for our boxes that went beyond traditional Christmas motifs. We have long admired Enikő Eged’s work, which approaches everyday themes with astonishing naturalness and a unique visual style. We were excited to see what she would come up with if given complete freedom after spending an afternoon at Chez Dodo. We chose the cats during our first brainstorming session and loved the playful way Enikő ultimately depicted them. The colorful festive balls of yarn on our boxes eventually turned into macarons, and the kittens sat down in a French café, where they forgot the hustle and bustle of everyday life for a moment with Chez Dodo desserts. chezdodo.hu

Christmas has Never Been Sweeter

Looking for the sweetest Christmas gift? You deserve to shine like the superstar you are, so come with us and take off for a planet of candy floss sweetness and glittery galaxies. Get the party started in the shower and say goodbye to dead skin with our Snow Fairy scrubee and hello to hydration and sweetness with our Snow Fairy body lotion. Top it all off with Fairy Dust dusting powder for an all-over shimmer. Don’t forget to make a wish! Glow Fairy gift HUF 22,990 www.lush.com/hu

s.Oliver United: Together we’re stronger

s.Oliver United is more than a perfume; it’s a way of life! The new twin fragrance for him and for her inspires you to break free from your routines and achieve great things together. For those who enjoy life to the fullest, understand the power of community and want to share special moments. This powerful and harmonious fragrance duo is now available in stores.

Avon’s Magical Mood Maker

There is something truly magical about a fragrance that not only complements us but also creates a mood. What could be more special than wearing the scent of Christmas itself? The Avon Far Away Sparkle perfume, with its cheerful, intense notes of caramelized praline, peach, and jasmine, creates an irresistible sparkle and fills cool days with vibrant energy. A new, limitededition scent available only during the holidays. avononline.avon.hu

Rediscover your most radiant smile with Swissdent Biocare, a luxurious whitening toothpaste that cares for teeth and gums with exceptional gentleness. Formulated for daily use, Biocare combines enzymes and active ingredients to safely remove stains, regenerate enamel, and soothe gums. Enriched with hyaluronic acid and natural plant extracts, its low-abrasive formula gently polishes the teeth to a smooth, glossy finish; perfect for those who enjoy coffee, tea or red wine. This festive season, the Swissdent Biocare Gift Set includes toothpaste, mouthwash and a sleek toothbrush, beautifully presented in a pomegranate-themed box with a signature red ribbon. www.profimed.hu

Swissdent Biocare Gift Set

Photo by Balázs Glódi

New Book Collates Visual Diaries of Budapest and More

“Budapest Safari,” a new anthology of images of the city and other places from travels by the Hungary-based artist Marcus Goldson, has just been released. The book reflects his time living in Budapest, where he has been creating images of the city since the 1990s.

GARY J. MORRELL

“My new book brings together my watercolor paintings and drawings, created over many years, each one an attempt to capture the life, atmosphere, and quiet daily dramas of Budapest. Alongside these are scenes and impressions from travels farther afield; each image, I hope, tells its own small story,” Goldson tells the Budapest Business Journal

The artist was born and raised in Kenya. He trained as a sculptor, working in various metals, and earned a degree in sculpture and art history in 1990 from Winchester School of Art in the United Kingdom. When he arrived in Hungary in 1993, he started painting in watercolors because they were economical and portable. He has worked in set design and created illustrations for books, magazines, newspapers, and online publications. He sells his work online and through outlets

and art markets in Budapest and elsewhere in Hungary. He also works as an art teacher and has created art courses for primary, secondary and university-aged students.

BBJ: What is your aim with the book?

Marcus Goldson: My paintings are visual diaries, records of where I’ve been, what I’ve noticed, and what has made me pause. But I also see them as shared experiences: open invitations for others to step in, reflect, and perhaps rediscover their

own memories and meanings. I seek out the overlooked details of daily life, forgotten fashions, routines, and the unnoticed drama unfolding in the most unexpected places. I want to capture all of this, to experiment with traditional media in fresh and challenging ways, and to offer glimpses that feel familiar, surprising, or simply worthy of a big smile. With few exceptions, the pictures in this book are inspired by real people and places. My ideas begin with observation but come alive through drawing, juxtaposition, and remodeling. Sometimes, reality itself, seen at the right place and time, needs no alteration at all.

BBJ: How do you define the look and feel of Budapest as reflected in your pictures?

MG: Budapest is an attractive and liveable city, and I love living here. I think this is reflected in my paintings, whether they be grand views, local neighborhoods or places that are a little rough around the edges. I show places I like to go to or people I meet or observe. In short, [it is] a visual diary of my interactions in the city.

BBJ: How do you define your painting technique?

MG: I draw everything in a sketchbook that is always on me. I draw from direct observation or put down ideas

Corporate Care Takes Center Stage at BeneFit Prize 2025

Urgent, broad-based changes are needed across the labor market, as the greatest challenge employers face today in Hungary is retaining, attracting, and securing longterm commitment from talented workers. The BeneFit Prize hopes to drive that development.

BENCE GAÁL

On average, people spend around 10,000 days of their lives at work, so it matters greatly how they feel during that time. HR solutions must go far beyond offering competitive salaries: numerous studies show that the most critical retention factor is care, and companies can only remain competitive in the long run if this care is reflected in their corporate well-being practices. What’s more, investing in corporate care through a comprehensive corporate health program is highly profitable. At health-focused companies, employees perform twice as well on average, and take roughly three fewer sick days per

year, according to data from the AYCM (All You Can Move) SportPass program.

AYCM and the nonprofit association Humánpolitika.com established the BeneFit Prize competition in 2019 to further encourage these goals. The program is unique in Hungary, assessing corporate health initiatives across nearly 20 categories and awarding the most outstanding companies. The award ceremony took place for the fourth time at the Buda Castle Royal Riding Hall on Nov. 13.

The evaluation criteria headings include healthy workplace dining, workplace sports, healthcare benefits, a healthy work

environment, corporate insurance systems, legal assistance, mental wellness, rest and recreation, environmental awareness, sustainability, equal opportunities, education, and family- and childfriendly practices, among others.

Educating Leaders

BeneFit founder Zsuzsa Mihalik says the project aims to educate corporate leaders, guiding them toward continuously increasing employee satisfaction, and seeks to implement this concept in several ways.

Winners of the prize share their best practices at a knowledge-sharing conference, BeneFit Share, presenting the initiatives that have made their companies successful and enjoyable

workplaces. A HR-focused club has also been created, offering exciting programs where participants can build friendships or even form new business connections. The competition addresses both key actors in the labor market.

For employees, the goal of the award is to make corporate care visible and send a message to job seekers or career starters about the factors that cannot be conveyed in a job advertisement. However, these “hidden” elements often guide workers’ decisions and keep them at a company for many years, reducing workplace frustration, stress, and the much-feared turnover.

Award-winning employers may use the BeneFit quality label as a mark of distinction, helping talented employees choose between workplaces by making it easier to find not only the right job, but the right work environment.

For employers, the aim is to present to the broader public those small, medium, large, and even giga-enterprises that consider their employees the most important and valuable part of the organization. This strengthens their labor-market position, improves their ability to attract new talent, and boosts loyalty among existing staff. Awardwinning companies also set an example for every organization striving for success.

More details about the BeneFit project can be found at the Hungarian-language website www.benefitprize.hu

Artist Marcus Goldson likes to get around town on his bike.

Photo by Miklós Déri

that I have imagined. Sometimes I complete a painting while observing the scene; more often than not, I use the sketchbook to plan and work out most of the details and decisions for a larger, more complicated work in the studio. My larger works (50cm × 70cm, 70cm × 100cm) are also painted in watercolor, sometimes in conjunction with collage or screen-printing, and some can take up to five weeks to complete. The key, though, is the sketchbook, and I refer to it all the time.

BBJ: What do you see as your most notable pictures?

MG: Budapest never ceases to inspire me. It offers endless variety: beautiful buildings, eccentric figures, quiet inner courtyards, and lively public squares. But my sketchbook has also travelled far beyond the city limits, to Africa and Asia, across Europe and into the Middle East, capturing the colors, light, and moods that make each place distinct and special. Most of my pictures are simple observations of real life, though sometimes they are lightly embroidered by imagination. For me, anything that hints at a story, provokes a smile, or stirs memory or curiosity is a valid and irresistible subject. Further, I create pictures that describe a situation, or, more exactly, remind you of a situation or place you may have experienced yourself, and saying it with some humor or irony counts as notable pictures.

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BBJ: How do you see the pros and cons of working as an independent artist?

MG: As an independent artist, I’m my own boss in that I paint what I like, but I also need to sell the work to make a living. I need to be enterprising in what and how I choose to sell my work. I have been selling at art and craft markets in Hungary for more than 15 years, and I soon learned what goes and what does not in a local setting, as well as what is popular for an international audience. Luckily,

I’m able to sell my work, but it has been a long journey, particularly learning about the business of selling art, something I didn’t know much about when I started and that wasn’t taught at art school. Staying relevant and aware of emerging new ideas, methods, and movements locally and internationally is vital. You’ve got to keep observing!

BBJ: How does an artist make a living in Hungary?

MG: You need to be passionate about your art and enterprising. I use social media, art markets and fairs, and sell my work in shops and online. Initially, a lot of friends and acquaintances bought my paintings and helped me with exhibitions. I asked cafés and bars if I could have exhibitions and made sure that there was a prominent poster advertising it, and that the works were visible and for sale. As I got to know more people, my art became known through word of mouth, and I also took every opportunity to show my illustrations in publications and books. A lot of my paintings are sold as prints, which broadens the audience for my work.

BBJ: Do any classic Hungarian artists influence you?

MG: I’ve been influenced by many different artists from many different eras and places. From the 19th century, JMW Turner, amongst many others,

got me into watercolors. David Hockney’s work inspired me to draw, and I also follow many contemporary Hungarian artists. I love the work of József Csató and Máté Orr, and admire the graphics of Andrej Tóth. African art, especially textiles, has influenced my preference for strong, bold colors and patterns.

Original artworks and prints by Goldson can be ordered via his website, www.marcusgoldson.com “Budapest Safari” is published by Symposion and costs HUF13,500. For now, it is available from Instagram on marcus.goldson

WITH US CELEBRATE

Embrace the joyous spirit of the festive season! Join us in the heart of Budapest and delight in the scents, lights, and flavours of Advent, along with a cheerful farewell to the old year:

• Mulled wine and warm snacks on the Winter Terrace of ÉS Bisztró on Fashion Street

• Turkey and goose home delivery

• Advent and New Year’s Family Table

• Festive Afternoon Tea in The Living Room

• Christmas Eve celebration in an intimate atmosphere with a festive menu at ÉS Bisztró

• Stylish New Year’s Eve celebrations in the hotel’s restaurants and bar

Wolfpack by Marcus Goldson.

4 Socialite Budapest Ghetto Wall Exhibition Loses

Focus of Core Historical Horror

In some countries, a city’s “ghetto” refers to a historical quarter, long populated by an ethnic or religious minority, possibly impoverished, but likely quaint: the Budapest ghetto was certainly impoverished, but lasted barely seven weeks. It was a stinking, cramped, mass-murder zone.

Feher, a German photo-journalist, long resident in Budapest, pointed out that the section of wall in the courtyard was not “discovered in 2010,” as claimed, nor is it precisely in its original form.

Rather, it was the center of a battle between preservationists and property developers before 2006, when the developers won out and demolished the original wall to enable construction of luxury apartments nearby.

Public Outrage

Even at 10 a.m., the tourist throngs on Király utca in Budapest’s Erzsébetváros (District VII) frequently spill onto the street to move forward, such is the popularity of this inner-city location, known as the capital’s “party district.”

Amidst the many cafés, bars, hostels and escape rooms, a relatively new attraction has sprung up: at number 15, sharing the premises of the High Fives bar-cumnight-rave venue, a large sign invites guests to visit the Ghetto Wall Exhibition, including the opportunity to see the last section of the wall surrounding the shortlived wartime Budapest Jewish ghetto.

Your reviewer, unexpectedly stumbling upon the location in October after a gruelling interview, thought it was worth a proper visit. Better still, a meeting was arranged in early November for the international press corps with the team behind the exhibition to glean the full story.

Created in late 2024, the opening of the exhibition was timed to act as a small memorial to coincide with the 80th anniversary of the establishment of the Jewish ghetto in the first winter days of 1944, tour guide Ádám Botta, one of the team behind the project, told the assembled reporters on Nov. 5.

The exhibition room is only moderately sized, with tables featuring information pages and books on Hungarian and broader Holocaust history, as well as on notable Hungarian inventors.

Ádám Botta, manager and guide for Tourist Angel, and Orsolya Mira Végh, teacher, tour guide and writer, two of the five-person team who designed the Ghetto Wall Exhibition.

A wooden kitchen cabinet, owned by the grandmother of one of the exhibition team members who lived in and survived the ghetto, holds artefacts and books typical of the era. The surrounding walls display large, colorful information posters that give a potted, general 1,000-year history of Hungary, along with an outline of the historical Jewish interaction with the majority-Christian Hungarian population.

Comprehensive Picture

“The motivation behind this was, of course, the 80th anniversary [of the establishment of the ghetto]. Also, as guides, we have been finding it important on tours to give a comprehensive picture about Hungarian history before we start talking about WW2 and the events preceding it,”

Orsolya Mira Végh, tour guide and a member of the project team, told journalists by way of introduction.

Access to the former ghetto wall, the primary object of the project, is gained via a corridor whose walls are covered with historical photos of Budapest (all uncaptioned).

The section, perhaps 20 meters in length, boasts a small memorial plaque placed centrally, and has what is believed to be an original barbedwire topping dating from the ghetto era at one end. The ghetto itself lay on the other side of the wall.

Végh invited the party to hold a oneminute silence while at the wall in memory of its associated victims, a custom she initiated when guiding visiting groups.

A short film focusing on the contributions of Hungarian-Jewish scientists to the development of the atom bomb in the United States during World War II is the final, third element of the exhibition.

So how does it all stack up?

The consensus on the day could be summed up as “middling.” Martin

Paul Marer: ‘I Survived the Ghetto’

Professor Paul Marer, former academic dean at the Central European University Business School at the turn of the century, entered the ghetto as a child hand-in-hand with his grandmother one day in early December 1944. He was oblivious to the purpose: for him, it was just another forced move. In his memoir, published in 2024, Marer recounts, “When we first moved into the ghetto, water came through the pipes, very slowly. Soon, however, no water came at all.

Therefore, a large hole was dug in one corner of the basement for use as a latrine. The stink was unbearable.”

He slept, along with his grandmother, in a tiny room of five square meters, shared with 12 other people. Marer estimates that the small building housed 200 people.

“In [sic] most days, some residents died, and new ones arrived,” he writes, estimating (after research as an adult) that by early January 1945, 70,000 Jews, the population of a decent-sized

“The occupants of the building collected the stones, and due to public outrage, it was later re-erected,” according to Feher, though the restored section is in a more picturesque condition than previously.

“It’s tame. I’m not sure if there was anything about the ghetto in the film,” said Mike, a retired American journalist, after a solo visit to the site. He nonetheless defended the exhibition, to a point. “It is all there, if you read the texts and look at the various books on the table about the Holocaust,” he insisted. This is a fair summary. The problem is that most visitors who come upon Király utca 15, whether weekend party-goers or mature tourists, will have no knowledge whatsoever not only of the ghetto, but of the entire Hungarian Holocaust.

As Botta, who guides parties in both Italian and English, admitted: “Many Italians have come here, and they only learned from me that it was a [Nazi] concentration camp ghetto, it’s not a quarter of a town, like in Rome, Florence or Venice [...]. They are not well-informed. It’s not taught in school in many other European countries.”

Moreover, most visitors are prepared to spend only 15-20 minutes perusing the exhibition, including viewing the film, which is probably the most memorable element of the entire show. On checking, the film indeed fails to mention the ghetto and has just one half-sentence on Jewish persecution in Hungary.

For your reviewer, this will mean not only that the vast majority of visitors know nothing of the ghetto on arrival, but they may well exit in almost the same state of ignorance.

With an entrance fee of HUF 1,500, the price of a coffee in the area, the charge that it is a “tourist trap” is over the top. But as another retired editor commented after the visit: “It’s vague.” For your reviewer, it’s a missed opportunity.

Hungarian town, were crammed into the area of just 0.3 square kilometers. This contained 291 buildings, which had previously housed 3,600 inhabitants. The dead lay in the streets, with bodies piled up in Klauzál tér, the ghetto’s only open space. In a matter of three months, the Jewish population of Budapest was reduced from 200,000 to some 90,000 in total at liberation in mid-January 1945. Marer survived until liberation and later emigrated to the United States. He does not feature in the Ghetto Wall exhibition.

Photo by Kester Eddy

József Kordás Returns With new Gallery Near Ráday Utca

Budapest has a new gallery, a few steps from Ráday utca, dedicated to the work of the painter József Kordás. After nearly two decades of self-imposed retreat, the artist is back with roughly 30 new canvases, while several earlier, iconic works are also on free public view.

The venue, on Biblia utca, marks a formal return for one of the most noted Hungarian contemporary painters of the early 2000s.Kordás’ large-scale pieces drew wide attention at the turn of the millennium.

His painting bringing the Hungarian national anthem to canvas hung for years in the Parliament and the Office Building of the National Assembly, often serving as the backdrop to diplomatic events.

Many also remember his striking “Ode to Joy,” which translated music into a visual experience. The gallery’s opening signals a curated re-entry into public life, placing both the new cycle and earlier reference pieces in one space for comparison.

Kordás chose to step away from the art world for close to 20 years, continuing to create while staying out of the public eye. With the launch of the Kordás Gallery, he decided the moment was right to re-engage and present the results in a focused setting.

The space showcases the works of a master now in his early 70s. While the new and the old paintings differ in many respects, they share a distinctive signature that engages viewers immediately.

Spatial Effect

According to the art experts, the compositions are painted on a plane, yet register with a tangible sense of depth, reinforcing a dynamic, contemporary mode of expression. That spatial effect, achieved without relief, is one of the reasons the works seem fresh even when they echo earlier themes.

The canvases rely on bold chromatic contrasts and confident handling of paint quantity, producing a visual density that holds attention at close range or from across the room. Kordás links the new series directly to the research he pursued while out of the spotlight.

“Every creator with self-respect aims to bring something new into being, in whole or in part. That motivation drives me in writing and in painting,” he says. “I spent recent years researching, writing, and reading. I summed up my observations in a book titled ‘Creation,’ and the paintings are the visible results of this two-decade journey.”

The exhibition opened with the artist and gallery-founder Dávid Borsos welcoming visitors. The presentation is designed to make the continuity of Kordás’ work visible. Earlier benchmark pieces establish the reference points, while the latest canvases expand the vocabulary toward themes that preoccupied Kordás during his retreat.

The gallery confirms that most of the exhibited works are available to collectors, with a small group of key pieces retained by the artist.

“Most of the paintings are for sale, though I am attached to a few major works,” Kordás said. “The recurring themes in my latest pieces are the birth of the universe and energy, which I hope become almost tangible.”

From a market perspective, the return to the public eye strengthens supply with a defined authorial voice rather than attempting saturation. The location near Ráday utca gives the project a steady flow of footfall while still being able to stand as a destination in its own right.

Evolution of Method

For collectors who followed Kordás in the 2000s, the gallery opening provides direct access to the evolution of his method. For new audiences, free access encourages entry

at a time when galleries must compete with larger venues for attention.

A hallmark of Kordás’ method is the orchestration of color fields and experimentation with paint application. Canvases move between restraint and abundance without losing structural control. Even when pigment is applied generously, the images resolve into legible relationships. The result is a sense of elemental force, frequently cited by viewers as the works’ immediate appeal.

From a technical perspective, although the compositions are planar, they read as spatial. Kordás achieves this by leveraging edge behavior, saturation shifts, and layered passages that suggest receding planes without literal depth. The dynamic

is not an illusion so much as a felt space, aligning with the artist’s stated interest in energy and genesis. In that context, his book “Creation” provides a textual mirror to the visual display, indicating how the two fed into each other over the long interval away from the public gaze.

The gallery notes that the mix of never-before-seen works and earlier “classics” is likely to rotate as additional pieces from the new series are prepared for presentation. In contrast, the anchor works will maintain continuity for repeat visitors.

In placing a mature artist’s return at the center of a new gallery venture, the founders are betting on depth rather than novelty. The strategy, they say, is to let the paintings carry the argument.

GERGELY HERPAI

József Kordás talks about one of his works during the official gallery opening.

Grimm’s Fairytale Mother Hulda Brought to Life at Budapest Circus

If you haven’t been to the circus in a while, perhaps it is time to reconsider. In the early to mid-decades of the last century, audiences were still dazzled by performances featuring trained wild animals such as lions, tigers, snakes, elephants, horses and monkeys. And, of course, the “indispensable” clowns.

Times and sensibilities have changed. Modern circus art requires experiences that appeal to the senses. Today, as described by Péter Fekete, the director of Budapest’s Capital Circus, it is an interdisciplinary format that brings together ballet, opera, musicals, theater, orchestras, drama, and circus performers, including aerialists, jugglers, and dancers. With Christmas approaching, Fekete has chosen one of Grimm’s classic fairytales, “Mother Hulda” (“Holle anyó” in Hungarian), to delight families at the circus. The story, which many will be familiar with, may not be new in the world of children’s theater, but it comes with its compensations.

The magic of long-awaited snowfall, brought about by Mother Hulda shaking out her featherbed, may make up for the many years without a white Christmas. In Fekete’s interpretation of the original tale, Mother Hulda’s two daughters are fundamentally different from one another.

How can the daily struggles of these incompatible teenagers be resolved through the combination of the original tale and the director’s vision? The performance explores problems far deeper than jealousy between the pretty and plain, or the everyday conflicts between a diligent daughter and a lazy sibling.

How can children acknowledge each other’s faults? How can they adapt to one another when reconciliation seems impossible? What does it mean to be a sibling, to accept another unconditionally?

Circus for all Ages

Mother Hulda faces her own challenges, too. Daily tasks must be completed, and it’s not too much of a spoiler alert to suggest that a spindle dropped into a well plays a central role in the story. This is not only a moral tale for children, but also for adults, and proves once again that the circus speaks to every generation.

The leading roles are played by a Brazilian and a Russian acrobat, with the story carried along by a three-person Hungarian clown collective known as Ho-Pi-He (the Hungarian word for

Culture Matters

A regular look at culture issues in Hungary and the region

“snowflake”). A cultural kaleidoscope of nationalities are assembled in the ring to tell this story: Chinese, Uzbek, German, Hungarian, Russian and Ukrainian circus artists all play their parts.

With a nod to classical circus traditions, domesticated animals help bring the story to life. The audience can see alpacas and llamas, and can even learn how a spinning wheel works. Veteran actresses Marika Oszwald and Kati Zsurzs also play an essential role in presenting this fairytale.

The “ring master” pulling all this together is Péter Fekete, a Jászai Mari Awardwinning theater director, performer, circus artist, and now the director general of the National Circus Arts Center and the Capital Circus of Budapest, who says he aims to create a truly unique institution for circus art. Between 1995 and 2002, Fekete was the head of European theater affairs at the Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff. From 2007 to 2015, he was director of the Jókai Theater in Békéscsaba. Since 2015, he has been responsible for developing the national strategy for circus arts and supervising and guiding its renewal in Hungary. He was State Secretary for Culture from 2018 to 2022. “Ticket for the performances scheduled until the end of the year have almost completely sold out,” he says. “In January, we are preparing for the first Hungarian festival of the year, under the motto ‘Budapest, the locomotive of circus arts.’ From Jan. 7-12, 2026, the world’s attention will be on us, as the finest circus artists showcase their talents at the 16th Budapest International Circus Festival.”

Kurtág Documentary set for Feb. 19 Release

The documentary film “Kurtág Fragments,” directed by Dénes Nagy, will premiere in Hungarian cinemas on Feb. 19, 2026, to mark the 100th birthday of composer and pianist György Kurtág, according to distributor Mozinet. Recognized as one of Hungary’s most prominent living composers alongside György Ligeti and Péter Eötvös, Kurtág lives on the top floor of the Budapest Music Center. Though now wheelchair-bound, he remains deeply involved in his work and receives visitors from around the world. Shot over several years and in multiple countries, the film documents Kurtág’s creative life and family. In related news, the BMC will host a festival from Feb. 15-28, 2026, and a year-long series of events to celebrate Kurtág’s

centenary, featuring international stars and prominent Hungarian performers playing a cross-section of the composer’s oeuvre, the organizer said on Nov. 19. The government is financing the Kurtág100 program with HUF 342 million.

HFDA To Rebrand as Creative

Hungary Nonprofit

The Hungarian Fashion and Design Agency (HFDA) will be renamed Creative Hungary Nonprofit as of Dec. 1, according to a statement issued on Nov. 21. The change reflects the agency’s broadened scope, which, since the start of the year, has extended beyond fashion and textiles to include furniture design and production, online and offline game development, and the beauty and cosmetics sector. The agency has showcased Hungarian

designers at events from London to Milan, and from Dubai to Paris, while supporting more than 140 domestic brands through mentoring and development programs. Under the Budapest Select brand, it has also hosted more than 50 national and international events promoting Hungary’s creative industries.

‘Pelikan Blue’ Wins European Animation Award

“Pelikan Blue,” an animated film by László Csáki, won the European Animation Award (also known as the Emile) for Best Writing in a Feature Film at the Black Nights International Film Festival in Tallinn on Friday, Nov. 14, according to a statement issued by the National Film Institute. The film, the first Hungarian documentary presented in animated form, recounts the story of young men who forged international train tickets in Hungary during the early 1990s, following the fall of the Iron Curtain. Some characters are voiced by the real individuals involved, while well-

known actors portray others. Since its premiere in Tallinn two years ago, “Pelikan Blue” has screened at notable festivals such as Annecy, Hot Docs in Toronto, and the Xi’an Silk Road Festival.

David

Szalay Wins 2025 Booker Prize

British-Hungarian author David Szalay won this year’s Booker Prize and its GBP 50,000 (about HUF 21.7 million) award for his novel “Flesh,” according to BBC. com. The book tells the story of an enigmatic, emotionally detached man who is swept from a Hungarian housing estate into the world of the ultra-rich in London. “What we particularly liked about ‘Flesh’ was its singularity. It’s just not like any other book,” the BBC quoted author Roddy Doyle, who chaired the judging panel, as saying. “It’s a dark book, but we all found it a joy to read.” “Flesh” is Szalay’s sixth novel. He was previously nominated for the Booker for “All That Man Is” in 2016. The prize is the United Kingdom’s most prestigious fiction award and is open to novels written in the English language.

ÉVA BODOR

Péter Fekete, director general of the National Circus Arts Center and the Capital Circus of Budapest.

Chamber of Commerce Corner

This regular section of the Budapest Business Journal features news and events from various international business chambers. For further information and to register for specific events, visit the organizing chamber’s website. If you have information for inclusion on this page, send an email in English to Annamária Bálint at annamaria.balint@bbj.hu

American Chamber of Commerce in Hungary (AmCham)

The Thanksgiving Charity Dinner, one of AmCham’s most cherished annual traditions, returned on Nov. 21. Hosted in partnership with the Budapest Marriott Hotel, this year’s dinner brought together business partners, friends, and families to celebrate. It also supported two important causes: the Amigos for Children Foundation, which offers companionship and encouragement to hospitalized children through play and language learning and United Way Hungary’s SmartShop Program. This financial education initiative for primary school children aged 9–12 incorporates playful, real-life-inspired activities to teach essential skills such as financial awareness, money management, and responsible family budgeting. Guests enjoyed a musical performance by the Gypsy JamMal Band and a traditional Thanksgiving meal with turkey, pumpkin pie, and other seasonal favorites. They could also bid in the silent auction and participate in the raffle, with the main prize being return tickets for two to San Francisco courtesy of Turkish Airlines. Children had their own magical experience in the kids’ corner, with music by the Eszter-lánc Fairytale Band and a surprise visit from Santa Claus.

Belgian Business Club in Hungary (Belgabiz)

Belgabiz, together with Dutcham, organized a “China and Europe in a Changing Word” networking evet on Thursday, Nov. 20 at Taiwan Restaurant. The evening began with presenting TokajArtWine’s Belgian Special Edition sparkling wine and continued with a compelling presentation by geopolitical expert Richard Ghiasy, followed by an open discussion. Ghiasy explored the transformation of the international order, the reemergence of China as a strategically focused power, and Europe’s position amid these shifts. He highlighted the EU’s impressive structure but growing dependencies and stressed the need for innovation, urgency, and “coopetition” with China to remain globally relevant. The night concluded with a Chinese-style buffet dinner and lively networking.

Netherlands-Hungarian Chamber of Commerce (Dutcham)

Members of the EU Chambers Business community are invited to a Christmas Reception to reflect on the year that was, plan for the year ahead, and wish each other a fruitful 2026. Participation is open to the EU Chambers business community and subject to prior registration on a first-come, first-served basis. Tickets include a warm dinner buffet with one drink of your choice. Additional beverages are to be paid for individually.

• When: Monday, Dec. 8 • Venue: Crowne Plaza Budapest (WestEnd), Váci ut 1-3, 1062 Budapest • Fee: Members of the EU Chambers Business Community HUF 29,900 (incl. VAT); non-members HUF 34,900 (incl. VAT)

German-Hungarian Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DUIHK)

The DUIHK’s 2026 New Year’s event will offer a wealth of information and networking opportunities in a festive setting. We will provide information about the chamber’s planned activities and priorities for the coming year, during which companies in both countries will continue to face significant challenges amid political and geopolitical developments. Guest speaker Veronika Grimm, a member of the German Council of Economic Experts, will address these and other topics at the event. Grimm is a professor at the Technical University of Nuremberg (UTN) and head of the Energy Systems and Market Design Lab.

Hungarian-French Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIFH)

The CCIFH invites guests to its festive End-of-Year Cocktail Party, where new members will be introduced, and a lively quiz game, raffle, mulled wine, and buffet will be part of the evening’s program at the stunning Roxy Rooftop Event Space.

• When: Friday, Dec. 5, 6–9 p.m. • Where: Pullman Budapest, Nagymező utca 38,1065 Budapest • Fee: Members HUF 19,500 (plus VAT); partner members HUF 23,500 (plus VAT); non-members HUF 29,500 (plus VAT)

On Saturday, Nov. 15, the CCIFH hosted its annual Gala Dinner at the iconic Várkert Bazár in Budapest. This year’s event, themed “Code Houdini: L’Art du Mystère,” welcomed more than 320 guests from across the Franco-Hungarian business community for an evening inspired by illusion, elegance, and artistic escape. The theme paid tribute to Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin, the French pioneer of modern magic, and Harry Houdini, the world-famous escapologist born in Budapest, symbolizing the creative bridge between French and Hungarian heritage. The gala dinner program embraced the spirit of mystery, with a special appearance by Hungarian escape artist David Merlini, who helped bring the world of Houdini to life.

Swiss-Hungarian Chamber of Commerce (Swisscham)

The annual Swisscham Christmas reception is an excellent opportunity to build new relationships and nurture existing relationships in a festive yet informal environment. Guests are invited to look back on the year and, above all, laugh and have fun in each other’s company. Throughout the evening, guests will be able to sample the culinary creations of the InterContinental Budapest. Donations are welcome for the traditional raffle.

• When: Tuesday, Dec. 9, 6:30-11 p.m. (registration deadline Friday, Dec. 5) • Where: Merlin Theater, Gerlóczy u. 4, 1052 Budapest • Fee: Members: HUF 36,000/person (0% VAT); non-members: HUF 49,000/person (0% VAT)

British Chamber of Commerce in Hungary (BCCH)

The BCCH invites guests to its annual Christmas Party, with an expected attendance of more than 100 guests drawn from its membership network, including dynamic SMEs, toplevel executives of international companies, government representatives, and members of the foreign diplomatic corps. Chairman Duncan Graham will open proceedings. As is tradition, the event will include a reception, a Christmas cake, and a prize draw, among other highlights.

• When: Wednesday, Dec. 17, from 6 p.m. • Where: Kimpton BEM Budapest Hotel, Bem József tér 3, 1027 Budapest • Fee: Members, HUF 20,000 (plus VAT); non-members, HUF 30,000 (plus VAT)

Swedish Chamber of Commerce in Hungary (SCCH)

The Lucia celebration has always held a significant place within the Swedish community, symbolizing light and hope during the darkest days of winter. This year’s festive gala evening will also be the closing event of the SCCH’s 30th anniversary celebrations. A seated dinner will be accompanied by buffet catering. There will also be a traditional Lucia choir and a special Swedish music show by the Danubia Orchestra and Barbara Schoblocher, performed exclusively for guests.

• When: Wednesday, Dec. 10, from 6 p.m. • Where: Crowne Plaza Budapest (WestEnd), Váci ut 1-3, 1062 Budapest  • Fee:  Members HUF 65,000 HUF per guest; non-members HUF 79,000 (Quantity discounts: 4-9 tickets: 5% discount; 10 or more tickets: 10% discount)

Italian Chamber of Commerce for Hungary (CCIU)

The CCIU will celebrate the upcoming holidays with its associates, partners and friends at its annual Christmas Gala Dinner in early December. Hosted in an exclusive setting and accompanied by live music, the evening will feature a menu inspired by Italian culinary tradition; to add a festive touch, the dinner will be followed by traditional Italian games. As guests gather to toast the season, the event will be a memorable evening of connections and a confident welcome to the year ahead.

• When: Friday, Dec. 5, 8 p.m.-midnight • Where: Dorothea Hotel, Dorottya utca 2, 1051 Budapest • Fee: Members EUR 140 (incl. VAT); non-members EUR 170 (incl. VAT)

Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Hungary (CCCH)

The CCCH again delivered one of the most anticipated social events of the business community, as guests gathered for its annual Lobster Dinner, an evening known for its unique atmosphere, outstanding hospitality, and strong Canadian spirit. This year’s celebration welcomed many Hungarian and international business leaders, partners, and chamber members, all coming together for an elegant and memorable night. The event featured fresh lobster, a highlight for many attendees and a signature element of the CCCH’s long-standing tradition. The lively atmosphere was enhanced by live entertainment, premium culinary offerings, and outstanding networking opportunities, making the evening not only enjoyable but also meaningful for professionals across industries.

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