At the Budapest closing event of the KAVOSZ and Portfolio national roadshow, speakers discussed the Széchenyi Kártya Program’s role in SME financing, productivity challenges and fast-moving technological change. Trade organizations warned that sudden tightening of financing terms could threaten supply chains, while experts stressed the need for productivity gains, wider digital adoption and disciplined economic policy to meet Hungary’s euro‑adoption objectives.
Széchenyi Kártya Program: scale and function
Over more than two decades the Széchenyi Kártya Program has become a pillar of Hungarian SME finance. According to figures presented at the event, the program has facilitated more than half a million contracted transactions and channelled over 11 billion forints into the economy. Some 150,000 companies have engaged with the network; currently about 132,000 active contracts exist and roughly 40,000 new deals are signed annually.
The scheme involves more than 60 financing partners — banks, financial companies and leasing firms — and is supported by guarantees and state subsidies: Garantiqa Hitelgarancia Zrt. and the Agrár‑Vállalkozási Hitelgarancia Alapítvány (AVHA) provide guarantee commitments, while state contributions cover interest, guarantees and costs. The portfolio targets the smallest businesses: 70 percent micro‑enterprises, 24 percent small enterprises and 6 percent medium‑sized firms.
Speakers including Gazsi Attila, president of the Vállalkozók és Munkáltatók Országos Szövetsége (VOSZ), warned that unpredictable or hastily implemented tightening of program terms would endanger supplier chains and inventory financing — and undermines planning, investment, job retention and growth.
Productivity, digitalisation and finance
Végh Richárd, CEO of KAVOSZ Zrt., argued that raising SME productivity is central for restarting the economy and achieving sustainable growth. The macro environment has shifted since the 2010s: while that decade was marked by low interest rates, moderate energy prices and ample EU funds, the early 2020s brought higher interest rates, rising inflation and energy costs, stagnant productivity and falling investment volumes.
A KAVOSZ survey of over 2,500 firms indicates cautious optimism, but four structural issues must be tackled to trigger a lasting growth turnaround:
- weak demand (identified as the main uncertainty factor by the VOSZ Barometer and the MKIK–MNB joint business survey),
- high wage and input costs,
- productivity lagging the EU average,
- and a digitalisation deficit.
Digital adoption is notably low: while nearly 20 percent of firms in the EU use some form of artificial intelligence, only about 10 percent of Hungarian SMEs do so.
Credit costs and borrowing activity
High borrowing costs are restraining investments. The article reports that average SME loan rates in Hungary are around 8.5 percent — among the highest in the EU. By comparison, Poland is cited at roughly 6 percent, the Czech Republic above 5 percent, and euro‑area Slovakia and Slovenia around 4 percent.
Loan uptake is weak: over the past six months only 5 percent of firms took out a loan, and about 20 percent currently have a loan or plan to borrow — placing Hungary near the bottom of the EU rankings. In this environment the Széchenyi Kártya Program fills a market gap, particularly for liquidity and short‑term financing needs; participants noted it had helped companies like Amurex during raw material price spikes of 50–70 percent.
Economic policy and the 2031 euro target
The round of presentations addressed the prospect of euro adoption in 2031. Madár István, lead analyst at Portfolio, argued that reaching a credible path to the euro would require four years of committed, consistent economic policy — a spell not evidenced in the last 30 years by even a single year. Achieving lasting nominal stability will also require comprehensive change in corporate price and wage setting and a substantial rise in the share of highly skilled workers, especially among 25–29 year‑olds.
There are some reassuring macro developments: Hungary’s external balance position is favorable, foreign currency reserves stand at historic highs which reduce financial vulnerability, and roughly EUR 16 billion of EU funds are expected to be unlocked once the recovery plan is submitted.
Rapid technological change and AI
Speakers including Balogh Petya, founder‑CEO of STRT Holding, highlighted the accelerating performance of artificial intelligence. Balogh said AI capacity has been growing approximately 26‑fold per year and, if that pace persisted, AI systems’ capabilities could expand up to ten million times within five years. In practical terms AI typically automates parts of workflows rather than entire jobs: it acts like a tireless intern with high problem‑solving ability, yet human oversight and responsibility remain essential.
Technological acceleration also shortens corporate life cycles: while the average age of the 500 largest US listed firms once stood near 100 years, today it is under 15 years. Firms that fail to adapt risk rapid obsolescence.
Case studies and practical lessons
A panel of company leaders illustrated different adaptation strategies:
- Kuube Hungary Kft., founded in March 2020 with two people to develop smart street furniture, grew to nearly a 20‑person development team; its products are sold from Japan to Canada and manufacturing scaled to serial production in Komárom after attracting interest from Foxconn.
- EPS‑Global, founded in 2012, won a 20‑year concession in 2016 to build a Chinese city’s parking system but had to manage operations remotely after Covid lockdowns; it survived by pivoting from infrastructure developer to technology service provider and later selling software services in Europe, introducing AI‑based video analytics for plate recognition by 2021.
- Amurex Gm Hungária, started in 2006 as a family business in the free‑from food market, saw orders drop from HUF 15 million to HUF 2.5 million in a month during Covid; quick moves such as starting home delivery and converting a bistro into a shop preserved the firm. Its CEO warned of tight margins and high input costs and helped form a dedicated working group within the Nemzeti Agrárkamara to represent 55 companies and 20 experts.
Panelists emphasized the importance of financial awareness — owner capital training and employee loyalty programs — for retaining key staff and managing market risks. They also noted that state‑supported instruments like the Széchenyi Kártya Program are useful liquidity tools for SMEs.
Conclusions
Speakers agreed that while the Széchenyi Kártya Program remains a crucial financing infrastructure for Hungarian SMEs, it cannot substitute for broader reforms. Wider AI and digital adoption, meaningful productivity improvement, lower borrowing costs and disciplined economic policymaking are all required for firms to remain competitive and for Hungary to credibly progress toward the 2031 euro objective.
