Kazakhstan and Hungary agreed to establish a joint investment fund worth 100 million US dollars set to operate at the Astana International Financial Center, Kazakh Ambassador to Hungary Abzal Saparbekuly announced today at the Akorda Presidential Palace, Kazinform News Agency correspondent reports.
OTP may conquer Kazakhstan
Currently, Kazakhstan is in talks with a number of major Hungarian companies, including the entry of Hungary’s largest bank OTP Bank into the market of Kazakhstan, said Saparbekuly.
The Kazakh ambassador added that a delegation of Hungary’s telecommunication and space IT company arrived in Kazakhstan as part of an official visit by the Hungarian President. “During the visit, talks have begun on joint projects with Kazakhstan Garysh Sapary, Kazakhtelecom, as well as defense cooperation”.
OTP Bank expanding in the Central Asian region. Photo: FB/OTP Bank
In addition, MOL, an oil and gas company, is holding talks on major investments in the gas sector of Kazakhstan, said Saparbekuly.
According to him, a delegation of Hungary’s MVM company, operating in the nuclear power sector, is expected to pay a visit to Kazakhstan soon, focusing on a number of joint projects in nuclear power, infrastructure and energy.
President Sulyok in Astana
Another major project is creation of a transport and logistics hub in Hungary. The relevant agreement was reached last year. In this regard, KTZ Express is in talks with the Hungarian side, which also include China. A joint memorandum is set to be signed shortly, noted the Kazakh ambassador.
OTP Bank CEO Sándor Csányi. Photo: FB/Budapest Stock Exchange
The speaker also announced Kazakhstan and Hungary completed talks on an investment fund worth 100 million US dollars. “It is planned to sign an agreement to establish the fund at the Astana International Financial center soon.”
As reported previously, Head of State Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has held negotiations with his Hungarian counterpart Tamás Sulyok, who arrived in Astana for an official visit.
Read also:
OTP may have EUR 3–3.5 billion available for acquisitions
OTP Bank told Világgazdaság, a Hungarian business news outlet, that they are actively exploring new acquisition opportunities, particularly in the Central and Eastern European region. According to the bank’s publicly stated strategy, they will only enter new markets if they can secure a position among the top five players through a single acquisition.
Photo: FB/JÉG – Jövőt Építők Generációja
Gábor Bukta, lead analyst at Concorde, noted that Kazakhstan represents a far more developed market in Central Asia compared to Uzbekistan. He added that the Hungarian bank could have between EUR 3 and 3.5 billion allocated for such a deal, which would be enough to acquire one of the five largest local banks—excluding the market leader. However, OTP is unlikely to purchase a bank below its book value, a key feature of their previous acquisitions. Mr Bukta concluded that acquiring a bank present in both Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan would be an ideal move for OTP.
Click for more Hungarian economy news.
