{"id":12829,"date":"2026-02-26T11:15:05","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T10:15:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/?p=12829"},"modified":"2026-02-27T10:15:17","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T09:15:17","slug":"az-mnb-botrany-egyik-kulcsfiguraja-is-ott-volt-matolcsy-gyorgy-csaladias-szuletesnapi-rendezvenyen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/en\/az-mnb-botrany-egyik-kulcsfiguraja-is-ott-volt-matolcsy-gyorgy-csaladias-szuletesnapi-rendezvenyen\/","title":{"rendered":"MNB scandal’s key figure was present at Gy\u00f6rgy Matolcsy’s informal birthday party"},"content":{"rendered":"

In July 2023, a special birthday party was held at Felix, a luxury restaurant on the banks of the Danube near V\u00e1rkert Baz\u00e1r, a favorite spot of government circles. The guest of honor was Gy\u00f6rgy Matolcsy, then governor of the Hungarian National Bank (MNB), formerly a close ally of prime minister Viktor Orb\u00e1n.<\/p>\n

Matolcsy, then 68, welcomed his guests in casual summer attire: an open-necked white shirt, white trousers, and a light brown jacket. He greeted his family members with exuberant joy. For example, after a manly handshake, he hugged his son \u00c1d\u00e1m – who was often featured in the press due to his luxurious lifestyle -, and patted him on the cheek.<\/p>\n

Although several of Matolcsy’s colleagues were present, one participant told Direkt36 that it was essentially a “family event” attended by a “close circle of confidants and friends.”<\/p>\n

From this perspective, it is especially interesting that among the guests was a man named B\u00e1lint Somlai. Somlai, whose hair was slicked back and who is known for his luxury travels and fondness for expensive cars, was notable for his presence because he had long been a recurring figure in controversial affairs related to MNB.<\/p>\n

As Direkt36 previously reported<\/a>, B\u00e1lint Somlai owes much of his wealth to deals he made with the Hungarian National Bank. His company, Raw Development Kft., carried out the central bank’s expensive, multi-billion forint Postapalota investment, as well as MNB’s headquarters renovation, which ended up costing hundreds of billions of forints.<\/p>\n

Somlai also played a key role in the MNB foundation scandal. In March 2025, the State Audit Office issued a report stating that the central bank’s foundation had suffered a huge loss of assets, which could also give rise to criminal liability. The auditors highlighted Somlai’s role in particular. They found that market competition may have been restricted by the fact that the foundation’s asset manager and its subsidiaries had in many cases concluded contracts worth billions with Somlai’s companies.<\/p>\n

It was already known that Somlai is friends with \u00c1d\u00e1m Matolcsy, but it was not previously known whether he had any connection with Gy\u00f6rgy Matolcsy. His participation in the exclusive birthday party suggests that Somlai may also be well acquainted with the former central bank governor.<\/p>\n

Join the Direkt36 supporters\u2019 group and get insight into investigative journalism! Details \u2192<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

We learned about the details of the July 2023 gathering when we obtained a photo album of the event. The album, titled “Gy\u00f6rgy Huba Matolcsy’s birthday, celebrated together with family and friends on July 18, 2023,” contains nearly 90 photos, including Somlai and many other guests.<\/p>\n

Direkt36 contacted one of the participants of the event, showed them the photos, and they confirmed that the gathering did indeed take place as depicted in the pictures. They also confirmed that Somlai was present at the event, as our source, who requested anonymity, knows him personally.<\/p>\n

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Gy\u00f6rgy Matolcsy at the birthday party.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The State Audit Office filed a complaint regarding the foundation case, but it is unclear whether there are already suspects in the proceedings initiated as a result, or whether B\u00e1lint Somlai is under investigation. At the same time, there are several indications that he may be involved in the proceedings.<\/p>\n

In early May last year, roughly a month and a half after the scandal broke, Telex reported that B\u00e1lint Somlai’s bank account had been frozen. According to the newspaper, the freeze was related to an investigation into matters concerning the Hungarian National Bank. Citing data protection rules, the Budapest Chief Prosecutor’s Office did not confirm this information to the news portal.<\/p>\n

In response to questions from Direkt36, the National Police Headquarters has so far only stated that it cannot disclose any further information due to the ongoing investigation.<\/p>\n

B\u00e1lint Somlai and Gy\u00f6rgy Matolcsy did not respond to our questions.<\/p>\n

The family and the team<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The July 2023 event had a family atmosphere. According to the photo album, many guests arrived with small children, for whom the organizers set up a special corner with toy bricks and drawing supplies. Meanwhile, the adults were entertained by a live band playing special Turkish instruments.<\/p>\n

\u00c1d\u00e1m Matolcsy, who has appeared in Dubai several times in recent years, arrived at the birthday party with his partner, Nicole. The elegant dark coat worn by the central bank governor’s son and his partner’s shiny blue bag decorated with an H logo perfectly matched the luxurious restaurant’s gold-colored walls. Based on photos taken at the venue, the bag was likely a Herm\u00e8s Constance made of alligator leather, which currently retails for between 9 and 12 million forints (about EUR 23,000-32,000).<\/p>\n

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Gy\u00f6rgy Matolcsy greets his son, \u00c1d\u00e1m. In the background, \u00c1d\u00e1m’s partner can be seen carrying a bag that appears to be particularly expensive.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Several figures who had closely observed the serious loss of assets by the central bank’s foundation, based on reports by the State Audit Office, were also present at the illustrious event.<\/p>\n

The mayor of Kecskem\u00e9t, Klaudia Szemereyn\u00e9 Pataki, and her husband, Szabolcs Szemerey, who is a relative of the former MNB governor, also celebrated with Matolcsy. Szemerey was previously the strategic director of the foundation that maintains the John von Neumann University in Kecskem\u00e9t. According to the State Audit Office, this organization lent 127.5 billion forints (nearly EUR 340 million) through bonds to MNB’s asset manager, a company called Optima, which was then unable to repay the loan.<\/p>\n

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Gy\u00f6rgy Matolcsy with Klaudia Szemereyn\u00e9 Pataki and her husband, Szabolcs Szemerey.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

One of Matolcsy’s old colleagues, Tam\u00e1s B\u00e1nkuty, who was an official at both the Kecskem\u00e9t University Foundation and the Hungarian National Bank Foundation at the time, was also present and clearly enjoying himself at the event. Based on official records, Kecskem\u00e9t news portal KecsUP reported in June 2025 that B\u00e1nkuty was one of the proponents of the bond deal between the university foundation and Optima. The photo album contains a picture showing B\u00e1nkuty talking to B\u00e1lint Somlai.<\/p>\n

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B\u00e1lint Somlai on the right side of the picture, next to him Tam\u00e1s B\u00e1nkuty.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Several former and current central bank officials were invited to the party. For example, Csaba Lentner, former member of the board of trustees of the MNB Foundation, was present, as were several former members of the Monetary Council, the central bank’s highest decision-making body, including Gy\u00f6rgy Szap\u00e1ry, who also worked as a senior advisor to Viktor Orb\u00e1n.<\/p>\n

Ferenc Papcs\u00e1k, former Fidesz mayor of Zugl\u00f3 and current chairman of the central bank’s supervisory board, greeted Matolcsy with a ingenuous handshake.<\/p>\n

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Matolcsy also warmly welcomed Ferenc Papcs\u00e1k.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Of the guests we mentioned so far, only Papcs\u00e1k responded to our inquiry. He confirmed that he attended the birthday party and claimed that he enjoyed the company of his colleagues and did not check who was there. Regarding B\u00e1lint Somlai, he wrote that he did not know him personally and had never met him.<\/p>\n

A familiar venue<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Based on the photos we obtained, not only can Felix be identified as the party venue, but also the specific room within the restaurant.<\/p>\n

This is the Aqva event space, which can seat 60 people and is advertised on the restaurant’s website as a venue where art and gastronomy meet. This room has been redesigned in recent years, and at the time of Matolcsy’s birthday in the summer of 2023, it hosted an exhibition called “Shaken not stirred”.<\/p>\n

All this is revealed in one of the restaurant’s videos<\/a> posted on social media at the time, and in its description. The video shows that the location of the exhibition is the same as the location of the photos we have seen. The post also mentions that D\u00f3ra Moln\u00e1r was responsible for the artistic coordination of the collection, and another post refers to Moln\u00e1r as the curator of Felix Aqva. D\u00f3ra Moln\u00e1r, who also appears in the video, is the partner of Istv\u00e1n Sz\u00e1raz, who is associated with \u00c1d\u00e1m Matolcsy’s circle. According to a 2024 article published by Szabad Eur\u00f3pa, Sz\u00e1raz and Moln\u00e1r are known in London as young Hungarian art collectors and patrons of the arts.<\/p>\n

Join the Direkt36 supporters\u2019 group and get insight into investigative journalism! Details \u2192<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

In response to our question, D\u00f3ra Moln\u00e1r stated that she was indeed responsible for the artistic coordination of the exhibitions held at Felix Aqva between 2021 and 2025. As her response revealed, the exhibition on display in the venue in the summer of 2023 was “inspired by James Bond” and “reflected on the joys of life.” She emphasized that she did this work without compensation.<\/p>\n

In a January article, Telex revealed that another Felix location was the setting for videos uploaded to Youtube by the former central bank governor. According to the article, Matolcsy records his videos analyzing the financial market and different periods of the Hungarian economy in a room called the Kov\u00e1sznai Salon, which Felix refers to on its website as its own hidden treasure chest.<\/p>\n

The article also recalls the history of the restaurant building, the V\u00e1rkert Kaszin\u00f3, which is closely linked to the Hungarian National Bank. As they write, the property became the property of the central bank’s foundation in 2016 and was renovated at a cost of more than 1 billion forints (EUR 2,66 million), after which it was acquired in several stages by the company of Gy\u00f6rgy Stofa, a businessman counted among \u00c1d\u00e1m Matolcsy’s circle of friends. According to the newspaper, the company operating the restaurant, V\u00edzh\u00e1z Gasztron\u00f3mia Zrt., is owned by another member of Matolcsy’s circle, M\u00e1t\u00e9 Pint\u00e9r.<\/p>\n

Citing its strict internal data management and confidentiality policies and respect for privacy, Felix Restaurant declined to answer our questions about Gy\u00f6rgy Matolcsy’s birthday party.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Direkt36 obtained a photo album from the former central bank governor’s birthday party in 2023. B\u00e1lint Somlai, key figure in the MNB foundation’s affairs, who acquired a huge wealth thanks to central bank deals, also appeared at the event.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":12830,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"single-telex.php","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[855],"tags":[778,885,886,214,215,225,272,302],"ppma_author":[550,522],"aioseo_notices":[],"fimg_url":["https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/matolcsy_clk.jpg",2250,1500,false],"authors":[{"term_id":550,"user_id":27,"is_guest":0,"slug":"szoke-daniel","display_name":"D\u00e1niel Sz\u0151ke","avatar_url":{"url":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Szoke-Daniel.png","url2x":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Szoke-Daniel.png"},"author_category":"","user_url":"","last_name":"Sz\u0151ke","first_name":"D\u00e1niel","job_title":"","description":"[:hu]Informatikus k\u00f6nyvt\u00e1ros szakon v\u00e9gzett az ELTE-n 2013-ban. K\u00fcls\u0151sk\u00e9nt t\u00f6bb \u00e9vig dolgozott a 444.hu-val, majd 2020-ban r\u00e9szt vett a Transparency International oknyomoz\u00f3 \u00fajs\u00e1g\u00edr\u00f3i mentorprogramj\u00e1ban. 2021 janu\u00e1rj\u00e1t\u00f3l gyakornokk\u00e9nt, 2021 szeptember\u00e9t\u0151l pedig teljes \u00e1ll\u00e1sban a Direkt36 \u00fajs\u00e1g\u00edr\u00f3ja.[:en]Graduated from E\u00f6tv\u00f6s Lor\u00e1nd University at 2013 as a librarian scientist. As a freelancer he worked with 444.hu news-site for several years, and in 2020 attended Transparency International\u2019s mentor program for investigative journalists. In January 2021 he started to work as an intern, and since September 2021 he is a full-time journalist of Direkt36.[:]"},{"term_id":522,"user_id":19,"is_guest":0,"slug":"andraspetho","display_name":"Andr\u00e1s Peth\u0151","avatar_url":{"url":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Petho-Andras.png","url2x":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Petho-Andras.png"},"author_category":"","user_url":"","last_name":"Peth\u0151","first_name":"Andr\u00e1s","job_title":"","description":"[:hu]Andr\u00e1s a Direkt36 egyik alap\u00edt\u00f3ja, szerkeszt\u0151je \u00e9s \u00fcgyvezet\u0151 igazgat\u00f3ja. Kor\u00e1bban az Origo vezet\u0151 szerkeszt\u0151je volt, miel\u0151tt a port\u00e1l r\u00e9sze lett a korm\u00e1ny propagandag\u00e9pezet\u00e9nek. Andr\u00e1s dolgozott a BBC World Service-n\u00e9l Londonban \u00e9s a Washington Post t\u00e9nyfelt\u00e1r\u00f3 rovat\u00e1n\u00e1l is. R\u00e9szt vett sz\u00e1mos nagy nemzetk\u00f6zi nyomoz\u00f3 projektben, k\u00f6zt\u00fck a Panama-iratok feldolgoz\u00e1s\u00e1ban. K\u00e9tszer is elnyerte a legjobbnak \u00edt\u00e9lt t\u00e9nyfelt\u00e1r\u00f3 cikkek szerz\u0151inek j\u00e1r\u00f3 Soma-d\u00edjat. T\u00f6bbsz\u00f6r tanult \u00f6szt\u00f6nd\u00edjjal az Egyes\u00fclt \u00c1llamokban: 2008-ban a World Press Institute programj\u00e1ban, 2012-13-ban Humphrey-\u00f6szt\u00f6nd\u00edjask\u00e9nt a Marylandi Egyetemen, 2019-20-ban pedig Nieman-\u00f6szt\u00f6nd\u00edjask\u00e9nt a Harvard Egyetemen. Andr\u00e1s t\u00f6bb magyar egyetemen is tan\u00edtott \u00fajs\u00e1g\u00edr\u00f3 kurzusokat.[:en]Andr\u00e1s is a co-founder, editor and executive director of Direkt36. Previously, he was a senior editor for leading Hungarian news site Origo before it had been transformed into the government\u2019s propaganda outlet. He also worked for the BBC World Service in London and was a reporter at the investigative unit of The Washington Post. He has contributed to several international reporting projects, including The Panama Papers. He twice won the Soma Prize, the prestigious annual award dedicated to investigative journalism in Hungary. He was a World Press Institute fellow in 2008, a Humphrey fellow at the University of Maryland in 2012\/13, and a Nieman fellow at Harvard University in 2019\/20. Andr\u00e1s has taught journalism courses at Hungarian universities.[:]"}],"tag_names":[{"name":"\u00e1llami sz\u00e1mvev\u0151sz\u00e9k","slug":"allami-szamvevoszek"},{"name":"Felix","slug":"felix"},{"name":"Hermes","slug":"hermes"},{"name":"\u00c1d\u00e1m Matolcsy","slug":"matolcsy-adam"},{"name":"Gy\u00f6rgy Matolcsy","slug":"matolcsy-gyorgy"},{"name":"MNB","slug":"mnb"},{"name":"Ferenc Papcs\u00e1k","slug":"papcsak-ferenc"},{"name":"B\u00e1lint Somlai","slug":"somlai-balint"}],"category_names":[{"name":"Matolcsy-k\u00f6r","slug":"matolcsy-kor"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12829"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/27"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12829"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12829\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12838,"href":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12829\/revisions\/12838"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12830"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12829"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12829"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12829"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.direkt36.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=12829"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}