Hungarian banks see flat account fees and slower card revenue growth in early 2026

Data released by the Magyar Nemzeti Bank indicate that Hungarian banks earned almost the same amount from account-keeping fees in the first six months of 2026 as they did a year earlier, and that earnings from card issuance increased only slightly. Officials attribute the lack of significant growth to a voluntary fee-stop that banks adopted ten years ago, a policy echoed in KSH’s figures showing stable financial-service charges.

While the number of accounts and cards has expanded over the past decade, the increase between the first quarters of 2016 and 2026 was under twenty percent for both categories. Analysts note that upcoming quarterly data will reveal whether banks can recoup the shortfall, especially as fee levels rose modestly in July and August.