E-commerce group eMAG has been fined HUF 225 million by Hungary’s Competition Authority, or GVH, after an investigation found that the company had only partially fulfilled commitments it had previously made to support Hungarian businesses.
The latest penalty is significant not only because of its size, but because it concerns a programme that was supposed to channel almost HUF 3 billion into measures supporting the online presence of Hungarian companies.
GVH concluded that some of the commitments were not implemented at all, while others were not delivered in the form or with the content originally required. As a result, the authority said the programme’s results fell short of expectations and did not provide sufficient support for Hungarian businesses seeking to establish themselves in online commerce.
The operators of the eMAG webshop acknowledged the shortcomings and waived their right to legal recourse, meaning the latest penalty is not expected to be challenged in court.
A nearly HUF 3 billion promise becomes the centre of the dispute
The origins of the case go back to 2021, when the GVH identified several irregularities in the operations of Dante International S.A. and Extreme Digital-eMAG Kft., the companies operating the eMAG webshop in Hungary.
The original procedure ended with a HUF 200 million fine and a much broader package of commitments worth approximately HUF 4 billion. Part of that package was aimed directly at Hungarian consumers, while another major component was designed to help domestic businesses strengthen their presence in e-commerce.
The latter programme was worth close to HUF 3 billion and became the focus of the latest follow-up investigation. The GVH launched the latest review in February 2025, specifically to assess whether the SME-support commitments had actually been delivered.
The conclusion was negative, as the authority found that some obligations had not been fulfilled and that others had not been implemented according to the commitments originally accepted. That meant the programme did not generate the expected level of support for Hungarian companies trying to enter or expand in online commerce.
This is not eMAG’s first failure to complete its commitments
The latest case is also part of a longer regulatory history between eMAG and the Hungarian competition authority. GVH had already conducted a follow-up investigation in 2023, when it found that some of the commitments arising from the 2021 case had not been fully implemented. That resulted in another HUF 50 million fine.
Portfolio.hu calculated that the eMAG operators have accumulated HUF 710 million in fines from the Hungarian competition authority in recent years, including the latest penalty and a separate HUF 235 million fine imposed in January 2026.
The figure does not mean that HUF 710 million relates to one single infringement. Rather, it represents penalties imposed across multiple GVH proceedings and follow-up investigations.
A separate HUF 235 million case was closed earlier this year
The latest penalty should also be distinguished from the HUF 235 million fine imposed on eMAG in January 2026. That earlier case concerned several consumer-facing practices, including the way discounts were advertised, information about expected delivery times and the presentation of delivery and cash-on-delivery fees.
The GVH also examined the moderation of consumer reviews. In that area, the authority did not establish an infringement but required eMAG to implement commitments concerning its review rules and communication with consumers.
