Medve-Balint, G. (2025). Regional Disparities and EU Funding. In: Biro-Nagy, A., Medve-Balint, G. (eds) The Path of Hungary’s EU Membership. Studies in Economic Transition. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
Abstract: Since joining the EU, cohesion policy has served as the primary source of funding for regional development in Hungary and other Eastern member states. These funds are intended to reduce regional disparities and support economic convergence. This chapter explores the impact of EU funding on territorial disparities in Hungary since 2004. Analysis reveals that […]
Medve-Balint, G. (2025). Sovereign Dependence: Hungarian Market Economy in the European Union. In: Biro-Nagy, A., Medve-Balint, G. (eds) The Path of Hungary’s EU Membership. Studies in Economic Transition. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
Abstract: Like many Eastern EU member states, Hungary has developed an economy heavily reliant on foreign capital inflows and foreign investors. Within this framework, the export performance of foreign investors has significantly contributed to economic growth and facilitated the rapid integration of Hungary’s domestic economy into the global market. However, this model has also specialized […]
Biro-Nagy, A., & Medve-Balint, G. (Eds.). (2025). The path of Hungary’s EU membership: Navigating sovereignty, dependence, and economic development (Studies in Economic Transition). Palgrave Macmillan.
Book description: This book examines the impact of European Union membership in Hungary over the past two decades. It explores how successive Hungarian governments have either leveraged or failed to capitalize on the opportunities provided by the EU framework. Through a detailed analysis of various policy areas—including monetary and fiscal policy, regional policy, industrial policy, […]
Gergo Medve-Balint
Gergo Medve-Balint is Director at the Institute for Political Science, ELTE Centre for Social Sciences, Budapest and Associate Professor at the Institute for Social and Political Sciences at Corvinus University of Budapest. He obtained his doctoral degree in political science from Central European University in 2015. His publications appeared in JCMS: Journal of Common Market […]
Ban, C., Medve-Balint, G., & Volintiru, C. (2025). The politics of developmental alliances and municipal industrial policy in Central and Eastern European cities. Competition & Change, 29(3-4), 506-526.
Abstract: Comparative political economists have been late to acknowledge the role of municipalities in industrial policy. Given that industrial policy is traditionally the province of central governments, when and why do cities follow national industrial policy priorities and when and why do they deviate from them? To address the question, the article compares three middle-sized […]
Medve-Balint, G. From Rust to High-Tech Hubs: FDI-Led Upgrading of Urban Economies in East Central Europe. St Comp Int Dev 59, 740–766 (2024).
Abstract: In the semi-peripheral-dependent market economies (DME) of East Central Europe (ECE), foreign investors are major contributors to economic growth and tend to establish low value-added operations. At the same time, they enjoy superior bargaining power over central governments. The domination of FDI constrains domestic agency in shaping economic outcomes, thereby locking DMEs into the […]