Csányi responds to rumors, warns of distrust of Hungary

Deals

OTP Bank CEO Sándor Csányi responded to a wave of rumors regarding the state of his health and possible dissatisfaction with the Orbán government which had been triggered by his selloff of over 2 million OTP shares valued at €36 million last week. 

In denying reports of his resignation in Magyar Nemzet among other media outlets, Csányi stated at a press conference that he is “fully recovered” from his February heart surgery, feels “stronger than before” the operation and “could run marathon if I wanted to.”

Csányi stood by prior reports which stated that he would be reinvesting his stock-sale earnings in his farming businesses, and explained that he had planned the selloff for some time: He might have sold at least some shares as far back as last autumn, claimed Csányi, and the OTP CEO mentioned that he had told his broker to sell once the stock price dropped to a given value. And because of share prices last week “it was time to make the move now.” The selloff was therefore not to be interpreted as any sort of signal to the Orbán administration regarding the foreign currency-based mortgage relief plans under discussion or the government’s own recent investments in Takarékbank.

Seeking to reassure those with doubts about OTP’s future, Csányi said that “OTP remains a strong bank; its capitalization is high as is its liquidity reserves” and that the bank “will survive the government’s mortgage-relief plans.” However, he also warned that losses incurred by OTP could “increase distrust [toward Hungary] and reduce banks’ ability to attract capital.”

According to an MTI report, “Depending on the method and scope of the [mortgage loan relief] scheme, analysts expect the new burden on banks to be anywhere between HUF 80 billion [€270.1 million] and more than HUF 1 trillion [€3.38 billion].”

Csányi’s message appeared to assuage some doubts, at least in the short term: By the end of trading yesterday, OTP shares had gained 2.5% on the Budapest Stock Exchange, its first increase in a week.

Hungary Account Deficit at EUR 561 mln in Q4 Debt

Hungary Account Deficit at EUR 561 mln in Q4

Moldovan Pensions to be Increased as of April 1 World

Moldovan Pensions to be Increased as of April 1

Schoenherr Names Miklós Klenanc as Head of Local M&A Practic... Appointments

Schoenherr Names Miklós Klenanc as Head of Local M&A Practic...

Hungarian Wine Marketing Agency to Host Summit Drinks

Hungarian Wine Marketing Agency to Host Summit

SUPPORT THE BUDAPEST BUSINESS JOURNAL

Producing journalism that is worthy of the name is a costly business. For 27 years, the publishers, editors and reporters of the Budapest Business Journal have striven to bring you business news that works, information that you can trust, that is factual, accurate and presented without fear or favor.
Newspaper organizations across the globe have struggled to find a business model that allows them to continue to excel, without compromising their ability to perform. Most recently, some have experimented with the idea of involving their most important stakeholders, their readers.
We would like to offer that same opportunity to our readers. We would like to invite you to help us deliver the quality business journalism you require. Hit our Support the BBJ button and you can choose the how much and how often you send us your contributions.