About us

Danish Ship Finance was established in 1961 with the purpose of providing ship financing in Denmark. We have since expanded the scope to include ship financing in the international market. Our vision is to be the obvious choice of ship finance.

Our purpose

At Danish Ship Finance, we are a stable and reliable source of short-term and long-term mortgage financing for shipowners in all stages of the shipping cycle. We aim to be a trustworthy partner for our customers, financial counterparties, and other stakeholders.

Furthermore, we aim to obtain strong financial results for our owners. Therefore, we are dedicated to creating value with controlled growth in lending while focusing on high credit quality and diversification in our loan portfolio.

Our business area

At Danish Ship Finance, we operate with a loan book of approximately USD 5 billion secured by first-priority mortgages in 600+ vessels.

We are funded by the issuance of covered bonds on NASDAQ OMX Nordic. As a ship finance institute, we are supervised by the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority.

Our history

The history of Danish Ship Finance dates to 1961, when our company commenced the ship financing operations under the auspices of Danmarks Skibskreditfond. Danmarks Skibskreditfond was founded on June 6, 1961, by Danish banks, insurance companies, shipping companies, shipyards (represented by the relevant trade associations), and Danmarks Nationalbank.

Danmarks Skibskreditfond was founded without capital, but was guaranteed capital from the trade organisations, including Danmarks Nationalbank, as mentioned above.

The purpose of establishing Danmarks Skibskreditfond was to create a permanent source of funding for Danish shipowners and new buildings from Danish shipyards. The aim was – and still is – to provide a financial foundation for the continuous development of the Danish maritime sector.

Until the mid-1990s, the foundation was engaged in the financing of vessels built in Danish shipyards. Since 1997, the mandate has been gradually extended to the financing of vessels that are neither built in Denmark nor owned by Danish shipowners.

In 2005, Danmarks Skibskreditfond was converted into a limited liability company. The conversion was based on the Framework Agreement dated on January 17, 2005, between Danmarks Skibskreditfond, the Danish Ministry of Economic and Business Affairs, and Danmarks Nationalbank. The main objective of the conversion was to reform the framework for Danish Ship Finance’s future operations, including an adjustment of the rules to match the rules applicable to other financial businesses.

In 2015, the Board of Directors at Danish Ship Finance initiated a study of the company’s future strategic direction. As part of this process, the majority of shares (86.6%) in Danish Ship Finance A/S were sold to a consortium consisting of Axcel, PKA and PFA. The Danish Maritime Fund still owns 10% of the share capital, while the remaining 3.4% is owned by a number of minority shareholders.

In July 2024 the consortium consisting of Axcel, PKA an PFA sold almost all their shares to Magellan Capital Holdings Limited owned by Mr. Hassan Elali. After the sale Magellan Capital Holdings Limited holds 87.7% of the shares, Axcel 2.2% and a few minority shareholders 0.1%. The Danish Maritime Fund continues to own 10% of the share capital.

As a result of the conversion of Danmarks Skibskreditfond to Danmarks Skibskredit A/S (Danish Ship Finance), The Danish Maritime Fund was established on July 13, 2005. Through ownership of Danish Ship Finance, the fund operates to ensure that operations concerning ship financing will continue to be undertaken under the auspices of Danish Ship Finance to benefit the Danish shipowners and/or shipyards.

The purpose of the fund is to provide financial support for initiatives that can foster the positive development of the Danish shipping and/or the Danish shipbuilding industry, including equipment manufacturers, the creation of new jobs, and strengthening of the industry on an international level.

Since the foundation, Danish Ship Finance has paid approximately Close to 1bn in dividends to The Danish Maritime Fund.

Read more about The Danish Maritime Fund here