Ministry of Finance, Department of International Finances, 1945-1988

Collection

Holding institution (official language):: Magyar Nemzeti Levéltár Országos Levéltára

Title:: Ministry of Finance, Department of International Finances, 1945-1988

Title (official language):: Pénzügyminisztérium Nemzetközi Pénzügyek Főosztálya, 1945-1988

Scope and content:: The Jewish-related sections of the collection include: selected minutes of the Nuremberg International Military Tribunal in German (Boxes 16-18) pertaining to the international financial relations of Hungary and the financial aspects of the Holocaust [I]; records concerning precious metals and real estate expropriated from Hungarian Jews [III] ; information on the assets taken to the territory of the German Democratic Republic, opening of abandoned safes, nationalisation of the jewellery and precious metal business, trade licenses for silversmiths, the case of industrial diamonds purchased in Switzerland in 1944 and a general account of the wealth of the Centre of Financial Institutions from 1957; records arranged by countries: this part of the collection contain plenty of information on restitution and compensation cases, including negotiations with foreign countries and requests by survivors, cases pertaining to stolen artworks, inheritance and endowment issues, commercial and financial relations and liabilities with various countries, most of all Israel, Germany and Switzerland [V].

Archival history:: The material was acquired by the Hungarian National Archives in the 2000s.

Administrative/biographical history:: The Ministry of the Finances continued to operate after WWII, even though its structure was fundamentally reorganised in order to comply with the requirements of state-controlled financial life and central planning. The Ministry and its departments and subordinate institutions, such as Department of Hungarian Property Taken to Abroad and the Centre of Financial Institutions played a crucial role in the processes of financial compensation of Holocaust survivors and restitution after the war.

Subject terms:: Holocaust; Plunder; Restitution and compensation; War crimes