Hungary's parliament voted 135–46 on 2 October to strip the Supervisory Authority for Regulated Activities (SZTFH) of its power to pre-approve concession tenders and sign contracts. The TISZA government, led by Prime Minister Péter Magyar and Finance Minister András Kármán, is transferring those functions directly to ministries and has given operators thirty days to disclose ownership and management structures.
SZTFH, set up in 2021 to oversee gambling alongside tobacco, mining and cybersecurity, will no longer clear casino and bookmaking concessions before they are awarded. Ministers appointed by TISZA will review existing concessions in Szeged, Győr, Miskolc, Pécs, Debrecen and Sopron. Some contracts run for thirty-five years: the Sopron concession held by CAI Hungary Kft does not expire until 2061.
Kármán's campaign to "break with corruption" aims to restore confidence in an economy that has trailed every EU member state since 2023. SZTFH says it never issued concessions independently, only gave consent and supervised. Former officials say the agency is being scapegoated. Justice Minister Márta Görög was due by 30 September to draft a plan for dismantling SZTFH and moving its duties under direct government control.
Online gambling remains unresolved. The 2022–2023 reform, introduced after a European Court ruling against the Szerencsejáték Zrt monopoly, failed to attract international operators. TISZA replaced Szerencsejáték's board this summer but has not committed to further liberalisation.
