HUNGARIAN LOTTO MANAGEMENT TO CHANGE

25 May 2007

This week could see a decision to reposition state-owned lottery

Hungarian politicians are scheduled to debate the management of the country's state-owned lottery Szerencsejáték this week following the introduction of a Hungarian parliamentary bill that seeks to regulate the management of state assets. The bill proposes that Szerencsejáték, which has enjoyed a 70 percent increase in revenues over the past two years, will be taken into a merged National Asset Manager company formed with stake holders from three government bodies.

"The government has decided to merge the state privatisation agency ÁPV, the Central Treasury and the National Land Fund into a single company named National Asset Manager, which will take over the role of managing the state's assets," Finance Minister János Veres announced.

The new legislative proposal has raised fears that the government may not be able to find the support it needs to win a majority vote on the privatisation sale of the resultant gaming company if the bill passes.

Average gambling revenues per resident in Hungary are reported to be the highest amongst the lottery companies of Central and Eastern European countries that joined the European Union in May 2004.

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