Onderzoek naar Hongaarse staatssteun aan Erste Bank (voormalige Postabank) (en)

The European Commission has cleared a series of restructuring measures granted in the past by the Hungarian authorities in favour of Postabank és Takarékpénztár Rt. But it has opened formal investigation proceedings regarding so-called "Indemnity for unknown claims" that the bank, which was sold to Erste Bank in 2003, may have to face since May, when Hungary became a member of the European Union.

The Republic of Hungary notified to the Commission in 2003 and 2004 a series of measures in favour of Postabank és Takarékpénztár (Postabank) under the so-called interim mechanism procedure provided for in Annex IV.3 of the Act of Accession. The notified measures were adopted by the Hungarian authorities over the period from 1995 to 2003 to assist the restructuring of Postabank and to facilitate its privatisation. Postabank was eventually privatised in October 2003 when the government sold its 99.9% stake to Erste Bank of Austria. On 1 September 2004 Postabank was merged with Erste Bank`s Hungarian subsidiary.

After a careful assessment, the Commission has cleared several state support measures, including the capital injection of 152 billion forints (about €600 million) in December 1998, having concluded that they all took place before the accession to the EU. There is a general principle that subsidies granted in their entirety before a country's accession to the EU cannot be challenged.

The Commission concluded, however, that another notified measure, namely "Indemnity for unknown claims" may lead to further claims beyond what was clearly defined by the date of accession and decided to open a formal investigation procedure. At this stage, the Commission believes that the scope and amount of financial support provided to Postabank in the future cannot be determined.

The Commission is assessing the "Indemnity for unknown claims" under the EU's guidelines for rescue and restructuring aid^[1].

The opening of formal proceedings does not prejudge the final outcome of an investigation. The Hungarian government has a month to comment on the Commission's doubts and to answer its questions. The Commission will also publish a summary in the EU's Official Journal giving interested third parties the opportunity to forward their views.

^[1] http://europa.eu.int/comm/competition/state_aid/legislation/aid3.html#DIII