The acquisition of Budapest Bank by the state is not expected to raise either the deficit or the debt of the general government, the Fiscal Council said in an opinion on the amended version of the 2015 budget bill. The Council said it came to the above conclusion after consulting the National Economy Ministry based on the specifics of the presented transaction. The government signed a preliminary contract on the purchase of Budapest Bank from GE on December 4. The transaction is expected to be closed at the end of the first half of next year. A government resolution on the planned transaction showed that Corvinus Nemzetkozi Befektetesi, a unit of the Hungarian Development Bank (MFB), will buy the bank at a price to be determined based on the due diligence report. MFB will lend the unit the full purchase price and will guarantee the deal. MFB will also exercise ownership rights over Budapest Bank. Budapest Bank is Hungary’s eight-biggest bank. It had consolidated net assets of HUF 154.1bn and total assets of HUF 905.4bn at the end of 2013. The bank closed the year with consolidated net profit of HUF 13.1bn.