Stephen IV ruled from 1163 until his death in 1165, although many consider the defeat at Székesfehérvár in 1163 as the end of his reign. His father was Hungarian King Béla II, his mother Ilona, was the daughter of the Serbian Grand Duke Uroš I.

On the throne was his nephew, Stephen III followed.

A separate era of Hungarian coinage played a role in Stephen's coinage, which can be explained not only externally, but also from a monetary point of view in Byzantine souzerainity.