Key facts
- Frank Füredi resigned as executive director of MCC Brussels due to unpaid staff salaries.
- MCC Brussels, a think tank linked to Viktor Orbán, has not paid its staff for July and August.
- The new Hungarian government under Péter Magyar has pledged to end state financing for MCC Budapest.
- Füredi cited the Mathias Corvinus Collegium's failure to provide contractually agreed funds as the reason for his resignation.
- MCC Brussels has effectively ceased operations and faces potential insolvency.
Frank Füredi, the executive director of the right-wing think tank MCC Brussels, has resigned with immediate effect, citing the organization's failure to provide contractually agreed funds and leading to unpaid staff salaries. Füredi stated in a letter to the senior leadership of MCC Budapest that the persistent failure to provide resources meant MCC Brussels had effectively ceased operations and was unable to meet conditions under Belgian insolvency law.
MCC Brussels, launched in late 2022, is an offshoot of the Mathias Corvinus Collegium Foundation in Budapest, which was funded by Viktor Orbán's government. The think tank has been criticized for defending Orbán's policies and attacking civil society groups.
The future of MCC Brussels was cast into doubt following the April election victory of Péter Magyar, who pledged to crack down on corruption and end state financing for MCC Budapest. Magyar described a large transfer of state assets to the organization as a crime, though Füredi had previously dismissed these claims. Following Füredi's resignation and previous layoffs, MCC Brussels is down to 12 staff and three research fellows, from a previous total of 25 employees.
Balázs Orbán, formerly the chair of MCC Budapest and chief of staff to Viktor Orbán, stepped down as chair in June.