Company with indirect control over Hungary's main independent website Index changes hands

Speder, who fell out with Prime Minister Viktor Orban in 2016, said in a statement that the buyers were Gabor Ziegler, a member of the board of cemp-x Online, and media entrepreneur Jozsef Oltyan, with each now holding 50 percent of cemp-x Online.

Hungarian businessman Zoltan Speder announced on Monday that he had sold all his holdings in media group cemp-X Online Zrt which owns several publications and has indirect control over Hungary's main independent news website Index.hu.

Speder, who fell out with Prime Minister Viktor Orban in 2016, said in a statement that the buyers were Gabor Ziegler, a member of the board of cemp-x Online, and media entrepreneur Jozsef Oltyan, with each now holding 50 percent of cemp-x Online.

The index is the largest outlet to conduct investigations and break news critical of Orban after a shake-up in Hungary's media in recent years left most major news outlets under the control of the government, or businessmen friendly with it.

The new owners of cemp-x said, "the transaction does not affect the operation of Index.hu publishing house and its editorial" and Index would continue to be owned by the "For Hungarian Development Foundation" run by Laszlo Bodolai.