Minister of Transport

Ivan Bednárik comes from the Slovak village of Starý Tekov. After graduating from Janka Kráľa general secondary school in Zlaté Moravce, he studied at NSW Business College in Australia and subsequently obtained MBA from The Central European Management Institute in Prague. He has devoted his entire professional career to transport and logistics, in which he has now been active for almost three decades. Ivan Bednárik has held a number of management and executive positions in both the private and public sectors, primarily in the areas of strategic management, operations and sales. He made a significant mark as Chairman of the Board and Director General of České dráhy where he successfully stabilised the company's finances, increased profitability and secured financing for the rolling stock fleet in the amount of over EUR 1 billion. Before that, he was heading ČD Cargo, which underwent international expansion and achieved sustained profit growth under his leadership. After working in Budamar Group and several of its subsidiaries, he became an advisor to the Minister of Transport of the Slovak Republic, and since 2025 he has been the head of Železnice Slovenskej republiky (Slovak Railways) as Director General. He is the co-founder and former vice-president of the professional association Žesnad.cz, the first Slovak citizen on the steering committee of the Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER) based in Brussels, and also the first laureate to be honoured by the academic community and the business sector for his lifelong contribution and commitment to the railway sector in Slovakia and abroad. Ivan Bednárik is fluent in Slovak, Czech, English and Russian.

In his free time he enjoys traveling, hunting, history, literature and developing his management skills.

Personal data
Ivan Bednárik, MBA, born on 16 January 1975

Education
2015–2017: The Central European Management Institute, thesis on risk management
1995: NSW Business College, management
1993: Janka Kráľa Gymnasium general secondary school

Professional and public activities
15 May 2025 – to date: Železnice Slovenskej republiky, Director General
December 2023 – 14 May 2025: Ministry of Transport of the Slovak Republic, Advisor to the Minister
September 2022 – November 2023: Budamar Group, a. s., Member of the Board of Directors
February 2023 – November 2023: Tatravagónka, a. s., Members of the Board of Directors:
February 2023 – November 2023: Budamar South, s. r. o., CEO
May 2023 – November 2023: Budamar Innovations, a. s., chairman of the Board of Directors
December 2020 – February 2022: České dráhy, a. s., Chairman of the Board of Directors, Director General and CFO
November 2020 – February 2022: Výzkumný ústav železniční, a. s., Chairman of the Supervisory Board
January 2019 – June 2019 ČD Cargo Slovakia, a. s., member of the Supervisory Board
2017 – 2020: Ostravská dopravní společnost – Cargo, a. s., Member of the Supervisory Board
2015 – 2020: Ostravská dopravní společnost, a. s., Chairman of the Supervisory Board
2015 – 2020: CD Cargo Polska Sp. z o. o., Chairman of the Supervisory Board
2014 – 2020: ČD Cargo Logistics, a. s., Chairman of the Supervisory Board
2014 – 2020: ČD Cargo, a. s., Chairman of the Board of Directors
2008 – 2009: Express Agrotrade, a. s.,  (since 21 December 2012 Railtrans Logistics, a. s.), Member of the Board of Directors
2002 – 2014: Express Slovakia „Mezinárodní přeprava, a. s.“  (since 1 July 2014 merged into Express Group, a. s.), Member of the Board of Directors, Sales Director