ANY Security Printing Company

The company's Fátyolka Street entrance

After the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, the first independent Hungarian government was formed and the legal predecessor of its state printing house, a branch of the Viennese Imperial and Royal Court and State Printing House, was established by the Austrian government in Timișoara after the suppression of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848 and Independence War. The printing house began operation in 1851 and became the largest institution in a town that already had highly developed printing houses.

In 1868, the company moved its operation nearer to the government district of Buda Castle to supply the Hungarian government with state administration forms. In those days, the Finance Ministry supervised the Hungarian Royal Cadastral Lithographic Printing House Institute and Map Collection which produced and copied the cadastral (land-register) surveys and maps that served as a basis for land tax. In 1869 the government decided on the merger of the two printing houses, as it was necessary to solve the domestic production of fee stamps which were very important for the Finance Ministry. Due to the merger and development, proper conditions were realized for the fast and reliable production of fee stamps, a process that is confidential until publication. This improved production process extended to other state administration and treasury forms. The new institution was officially named Hungarian Royal State Printing House.

After the 1901 reorganization, the company's name was changed to State Printing House. The state budget and its justification, appropriation accounts, important bills, Financial Gazette and the time-tables of the Hungarian State Railways were printed in the State Printing House. Hungarian Royal Treasury Notes, different treasury bills, state promissory notes, annuity loan notes, class lottery tickets, blank bills, bills of lading of domestic and foreign freight and cigar and tobacco packaging materials and tax stamps were also produced there. The Hungarian government founded the Hungarian Banknote Printing House in 1922 which started domestic banknote printing in August 1923 in the buildings of the State Printing House. During World War II, the printing house served as a war factory producing food and fuel notes. After the war, the documents of the post and the railway were printed again, as well as state forms, bonds, and lottery tickets. For the 1945 election, State Printing House printed the election forms, later it produced the tax notes during the 1946 hyperinflation. The company has been producing lottery forms and tickets since 1947. Besides lottery forms and tickets, the production of election forms every four years also became a stable part of the production portfolio. Due to the investment in 1957, the capacity was expanded, quality improved and the production of multicolour printed stamps was started. In 1960, the company began to print export stamps as well.

For the general public, stamp production became the most well-known activity of the State Printing House over the decades. After the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, the Hungarian government found it necessary to pay for the postal and office fees with its own stamp in order to emphasize national sovereignty and for financial, and administrative reasons. Previously, these fees could be paid for only by parallel-published (Austrian-Hungarian) stamps produced in Vienna. The fee stamps were produced in Hungary from 1869, in the State Printing House managed by the independent Finance Ministry. The provision of the 1867 Compromise concerning postal services came into effect on 1 May. All of the post offices on the territory of Hungary came under the competence of the Hungarian Post Directorate. So a natural claim came forward that independently published Hungarian stamps should be put on the mails of the Hungarian Post. As this claim was approved by the emperor's government, the first Hungarian newspaper stamp was published on 20 June 1868. However, this was printed in the Viennese printing house and a German inscription could be read on the watermark. The inscription on the stamp itself was Hungarian, and the stamp design was decorated with the Hungarian coat of arms and crown. The first postal stamp produced in Hungary was issued in 1871 after the stamp production line of State Printing House was developed.

After the political transition, most of the state monopolies ceased to exist and competition started for production of products which were previously produced exclusively by state monopolies. As the state protection ended, there was no other choice but to reconsider the situation of the company. In view of these facts, the State Printing House was privatized in 1993. For the development of the company, a larger work area, more modern and more cultured working conditions were necessary, so the Company moved to Kőbánya, another district of the capital, from its former building near Buda Castle. The new printing house in Halom Street was opened officially on 4 October 1994. Meanwhile, the State Printing House took over the equipment and most of the employees of SZÜV Continuous Form Printing House. A brand new division was included in the portfolio of State Printing House from 1997: plastic card production and personalization. The investment started at the beginning of 1998 and a new modern plant was established in Fátyolka Street which developed further in 2000 and became able to produce chip cards. State Printing House established its Document Security Laboratory in 1999, which functions as a centre of R&D activities. State Printing House started international expansion in 2005 when it founded joint ventures with its local partners in Romania and Bulgaria and subsidiaries in Slovakia and Russia.[1]

After the company's privatization, it started to develop dynamically and now it is a leading security printing company of Hungary and the region. There has always been state ownership to a lesser or a greater degree among owners of the company, but it has stayed permanently under 5% for the last 20 years. Therefore, according to the Articles of Association and the related legal provisions, the Board of Directors decided to change the company's name. The 162-year-old company – maintaining its activity- operates as ANY Security Printing Company PLC from 1 February 2013. The company's short name is ANY PLC; the ticker symbol does not change.

The main activity of ANY Security Printing Company is the production of security products which include tax stamps, securities, food vouchers, stamps, paper-based documents and the security inks and solutions of the Document Security Laboratory. State Printing House produces the Hungarian card-based ID documents in the consortium: the personal ID card, the driving license, the motor vehicle ownership card, and the student ID card. Besides card-based documents, the Company produces VISA and MASTERCARD chip banking cards and smart cards for electronic signatures. ANY group personalizes and develops business forms for banks and insurance companies and it also produces invoices, delivery notes, printed, and blank continuous forms.[2]

Gyomai Kner Printing House, which belongs to ANY Group, produces books, magazines, and other printed materials.