According to index.hu, the sale of the stateʼsstake in Hungaryʼs largest bank would likely occur through an exchange auction, and Equilor investment house has already made an offer. The package on sale is worth HUF 79.9 bln, based on the closing price of HUF 5,670 per share yesterday, index.hu said.

Analysts were already speculating that the sale announced earlier in the day was the stake belonging to Hungarian National Asset Management Inc. (HNAM), and Lázár confirmed the rumor this afternoon. He said more details would be made available after the auction.

Trade in OTP has been suspended, as is usual in such cases, as the results of the bids could provide information that would affect the share price, according to reports.

The auction is to officially open until 4:30 p.m., however, purchase offers must be made between 10.00 a.m. to 12.00 p.m., and will be evaluated by the seller in the afternoon, according to reports.