Zoltán Varga (born in 1967) is a Hungarian businessman, investor, and publisher. He is the founder and owner of Central Group, one of Hungary's largest independent media companies, and one of the country's most prominent private investors.

Career

Varga graduated from the Faculty of Business and Economics at the

University of Pécs The University of Pécs ( , PTE; ) is one of the largest higher education institutions in Hungary. The history of the university began in the Middle Ages, when in 1367, at the request of Louis I of Hungary, King Louis I the Great, Pope Urban V gr ...

. During his studies, he worked for

Dresdner Bank Dresdner Bank AG () was a German bank, founded in 1872 in Dresden, then headquartered in Berlin from 1884 to 1945 and in Frankfurt from 1963 onwards after a postwar hiatus. Long Germany's second-largest bank behind Deutsche Bank, it was eventually ...

and the

Frankfurt Stock Exchange The Frankfurt Stock Exchange (, former German name: , ''FWB'') is the world's 3rd oldest and 12th largest stock exchange by market capitalization. It has operations from 8:00 am to 10:00 pm ( German time). Organisation Located in Frankfurt, ...

. He began his professional career at the

Budapest Stock Exchange Budapest Stock Exchange (BSE) (, (BÉT)) is the Stock exchange, third largest stock exchange in Central and Eastern Europe by market capitalization and Market liquidity, liquidity. It is located at 55 Krisztina Boulevard, Budapest, Hungary, in ...

in 1990. In 1991, he joined Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB), working in their

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

offices. In 2004, Varga founded Central Group (Central Csoport), initially focusing on factoring, receivables, and property management, along with financial consulting. The company later expanded into venture capital fund management and

private equity Private equity (PE) is stock in a private company that does not offer stock to the general public; instead it is offered to specialized investment funds and limited partnerships that take an active role in the management and structuring of the co ...

investments in 2007. In 2014, Varga acquired Central Médiacsoport Zrt., one of Hungary's largest independent media companies. The group controls 19 news portals, including 24.hu, and 25 print publications, such as

Nők Lapja ''Nők Lapja'' (, "''Women's Magazine''") is a Hungarian weekly women's magazine This is a list of women's magazines from around the world. These are magazines that have been published primarily for a readership of woman, women. Currently pu ...

as well as Hungarian editions of

Marie Claire ''Marie Claire'' (stylized in all lowercase; ) is a French international monthly magazine first published in France in 1937. Since then various editions are published in many countries and languages. The feature editions focus on women aro ...

and

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...

. Varga has also invested in Poland. In 2018, he acquired Wydawnictwa Szkolne i Pedagogiczne (WSiP), a Polish educational publisher, which he later sold to a Dutch investor. Since 2023, he has been the co-owner of Gremi Media, the publisher of two prominent Polish business newspapers:

Rzeczpospolita () is a traditional Polish term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "rzeczpospolita", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage" "thing, matter" and "common" is analogous to the Latin ''rēs pūblica' ...

and

Parkiet ''Parkiet'' (, full title: ''Parkiet Gazeta Gieldy''; ) is a daily newspaper published in Warsaw, Poland, since 1990. The paper focuses on business and financial news. History and profile ''Parkiet'', based in Warsaw, was launched in 1990. The p ...

Conflict with Hungarian government

Varga has been in conflict with the Hungarian government led by Prime Minister

Viktor Orbán Viktor Mihály Orbán (; born 31 May 1963) is a Hungarian lawyer and politician who has been the 56th prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has also led the Fidesz political party since 200 ...

's, who – as he claims – has targeted him and his media holdings. Varga has repeatedly accused the government of pressuring him to sell his media assets and of using various intimidation tactics. In 2021, it was revealed that Varga's telephone number was on a list of potential targets for surveillance of the

Pegasus Pegasus (; ) is a winged horse in Greek mythology, usually depicted as a white stallion. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as horse-god, and foaled by the Gorgon Medusa. Pegasus was the brother of Chrysaor, both born from Medusa's blood w ...

spyware. Varga has testified on that issue at the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...

. In 2023, Varga faced a criminal investigation by Hungarian tax authorities, which he claimed was politically motivated. He has described this as an escalation of the government's campaign against independent media in the country.

Philanthropy

Varga is involved in various philanthropic activities. He has established a mathematics foundation in his hometown of

Bonyhád Bonyhád () is a town in Tolna County in Southwestern Hungary. History The area around Bonyhád has been inhabited since ancient times, primarily by Celts. The modern town can trace its history back to 14th century. The town was briefly uninhab ...

and supports organizations such as Bátor Tábor and Mosoly Alapítvány. He is also a significant private supporter of the

Budapest Festival Orchestra The Budapest Festival Orchestra ( Hungarian: ''Budapesti Fesztiválzenekar'') was formed in 1983 by Iván Fischer and Zoltán Kocsis, with musicians "drawn from the cream of Hungary's younger players", as described by ''The Times''. Its aim was t ...

References

Hungarian company founders Hungarian investors Hungarian publishers (people) {{DEFAULTSORT:Varga, Zoltán 1967 births Living people