Capitalists without the right kind of capital

This chapter builds on the theoretical construct developed in the outgoing chapter. To do so, it harnesses the Varieties of Capitalism tradition – expressly an extension of the original framework: the Dependent Market Economy model – to Hungarian authorisation populism. The chapter identifies both tensions and fusions between them and find their unison a helpful theoretical construct to help at least partially explain Hungarian economic development since 2010. It then revisits Eyal et al.'s seminal 1998 publication Making Capitalism without Capitalists to demonstrate how post-2010 Hungarian capitalism has been achieved and consolidated, and Hungarian capitalists are now globally embedded, highly experienced operators of capital but are always on the lookout for alternative accumulation pathways they identify to assist with their principal objective: self-reproduction. This synthesis provides a useful way to better understand how Hungarian economic development in the current era is led by capitalists without the right kind of capital. This chapter finishes by outlining the qualitative methodological approach that informs this research: semi-structured interviews (n = 45) with key stakeholders and experts during multiple visits to Hungary over a six-year period.