Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency

HIPA's primary task is to channel foreign direct investment (FDI) seeking opportunities in the world to Hungary. This means increasingly fierce competition, as the new era replacing the age of globalization is not only characterized by the rise of Eastern countries with advanced technology, but also a slowdown of FDI-flows that makes securing investments an ever-greater challenge.

In this environment, the most important thing is to build partnerships based on mutual respect with all economic powerhouses around the world. This is a pragmatic approach, and it fundamentally determines the development and competitiveness of the Hungarian economy. The successes in the history of HIPA, founded in 2014, are due to the fact that we began to apply this connectivity-based investment promotion strategy right in time.

We reject any bloc-based division and position Hungary as a meeting point for Eastern and Western capital, technology, and knowledge to integrate our economy into international value chains as deeply as possible. This is the only way to ensure that our country does not drift to the periphery of any bloc but remains at the center of a region with strong economic growth. We do not view countries as systemic rivals and do not differentiate between Eastern and Western investors on an ideological basis.

This approach provides a strategic competitive advantage by ensuring access to the most advanced technologies. Its importance is highlighted by recent data from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI), which shows that China leads in 66 of 74 critical technologies shaping the future of the global economy.

The structure of FDI flows targeting Hungary also reflects the strategy of connectivity. Data from HIPA-managed projects shows that while Japan was the only major Eastern investor in the mid-2010s, South Korea and China have consistently topped the rankings since 2019. Furthermore, Singapore launched several large-scale investments in the country last year.

The Eastern Opening policy does not mean closing off from the West. On the contrary, we have created Europe's most competitive investment climate, where German engineering knowledge and Chinese technological innovation can create new value. This is evident in Debrecen, where BMW's electric car plant will be supplied with batteries by Chinese EVE Power, which has its factory next door to BMW's. We also see this in Kecskemét, where the Mercedes-Benz plant sources batteries for its electric models from CATL’s Debrecen factory.

Our strategy is successful, as the past four years have been the most successful period in Hungarian investment promotion, and in the 11 years since founding HIPA, we have contributed to 2,305 positive investment decisions, resulting in more than EUR 66 billion in investments and the creation of nearly 200,000 new jobs.

This article was originally published in Konnektivitás, 2026/1