György Matolcsy, the former governor of the Hungarian National Bank (MNB), talked about Hungary increasing its gold reserves from 3.1 tons in 2017 to 110 tons today on his YouTube channel, calling it one of the biggest successes of the past 12 years.
According to him, as reported by Index, Hungary’s reserves in 2017 were worth $125 million. Today, its gold is worth $12 billion, which has also benefited from a 300 percent increase in the price of gold.
Explaining how Hungary increased its reserves at the MNB, Matolcsy said that in 2018, the 3.1 tons stored in London were brought home, then it was increased tenfold, to more than 30 tons, another 63 tons were purchased in 2021, and then another 15.5 tons were acquired in 2025.
“The Hungarian National Bank invested a total of $5.8 billion in gold purchases, which is now worth $12 billion, so the MNB gained more than $6 billion, which is equivalent to more than 2 trillion forints,” he told viewers.
According to the former chairman of the MNB, the gold purchase was a strategic decision, driven by geopolitical and national strategic considerations. Around 2016, it was seen that a dual world system was emerging – a Western dollar-based system and an Eastern, Chinese yuan-centered system. In this system, gold would appreciate and not only be a financial defense tool, but also have political and geopolitical weight.
Since the Hungarian government pursued a strong foreign policy within the European Union, a “golden anchor” was needed.
“In the last 70 or 80 years, only those who had gold were actually allowed to come to the negotiating tables,” so this accumulation has been strategic, he said, adding that Hungary was among the first to start buying gold in 2018, which was followed by practically every country starting in 2021.
This put it in a leading position in the region in gold reserves per capita, ahead of Poland, Romania, and the Czech Republic.
Matolcsy predicts the emergence of a dual world system by 2050. The Western world will retain the dollar-based system, supplemented by gold, cryptocurrencies, and central bank digital currencies (CBDC), while the BRICS countries will increasingly move away from the dollar.
According to him, Hungary needs a financial system that provides a corridor between these two world systems. Similar to Dubai and Singapore, Budapest could be such a financial gateway.
