Peter Kažimír has been convicted of bribery and fined €200,000, but refuses to resign, arguing that stepping down would imply guilt.
Kažimír, who also sits on the European Central Bank’s Governing Council, formally completed his six-year term as governor of the National Bank of Slovakia on Sunday. He will, however, remain in office until the Slovak government appoints a successor.
On Monday, he said that he has no intention of stepping down voluntarily despite the verdict, arguing that such a move would be interpreted as an admission of guilt.
“I will, of course, appeal to the Supreme Court and, if necessary, to the Constitutional Court or the European Court of Justice,” he told news portal HNonline.
Last Thursday, the Specialised Criminal Court found him guilty and ruled that failure to pay the €200,000 fine would result in a one-year prison sentence.
The case dates back to 2016, when Kažimír was finance minister under Robert Fico’s Smer-SD party. Prosecutors allege that he repeatedly pressured the then-head of the Financial Administration, František Imrecze, to prioritise VAT refunds totalling over €3 million for certain companies, and that he allegedly handed Imrecze a €48,000 bribe.
He is the first official to be convicted for actions committed while serving in Robert Fico’s government.
Notably, he was sentenced by the same judge in April 2023, who delivered the verdict from the bench without a hearing. Kažimír appealed, prompting a formal trial.
What’s next?
The verdict has prompted calls for Kažimír to resign. Michal Šimečka, leader of opposition party Progressive Slovakia, said it is “unthinkable” for Kažimír to remain at the helm of a key institution, warning that it damages Slovakia’s credibility and investor confidence.
Even the ruling Smer-SD party and its coalition partner, SNS, no longer support him for a new term.
However, Kažimír continues to enjoy the backing of Hlas-SD. Its leader, Interior Minister Matúš Šutaj Eštok, has said that he “fully trusts” him and supports his “fight for justice”.
Kažimír also has long-standing ties to Slovak President Peter Pellegrini, the former Hlas leader who continues to wield influence over the party.
This is not the only controversy linked to Kažimír. Last year, Slovak daily Denník N and the Jan Kuciak Investigative Centre reported that Kažimír’s partner had bought a €1.5 million villa on the French Riviera through a family firm, using money funnelled via a Cypriot company tied to Kažimír’s friend.
Investigators later found that the funds had originated from a firm linked to oligarch Jozef Brhel and had likely never been repaid. The transactions coincided with “the Mýtnik” corruption scandal, which involved bribes and rigged IT contracts at the Slovak finance ministry.
(cs, de)