Dr Anna Molnár Wins Prize at Inaugural Central European History Congress

The 2025 CEH-Convention Prize recognises outstanding and innovative research in Central European history. Dr Molnár’s winning paper, Private Banking Activities of Female Religious Organisations in the Later Middle Ages, offers a ground breaking reassessment of women’s roles in medieval financial markets. Drawing on a unique dataset of over 2,000 Viennese annuity contracts (1367–1450), the paper demonstrates how female religious institutions, particularly convents, emerged as major lenders and proto-banking actors at a time when individual women’s financial agency was becoming more constrained. Her research uncovers new evidence of financial literacy among medieval women and reshapes our understanding of how private credit markets operated in Central Europe.

As part of the award, Dr Molnár will receive a monetary prize and tailored mentorship from senior scholars to develop the paper into a publishable article in a leading academic journal. The prize committee emphasised how much they enjoyed reading her work and expressed confidence that it will become an influential contribution to the field.

Please join us in congratulating Dr Molnár on this exceptional achievement at a landmark event for the discipline.