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 preferred choice of ship finance.
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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.