South Korea emerges as the most exposed economy to demand-side stranded asset risks in global shipping finance, according to new research from UCL. With nearly half of its shipping investments directed toward LNG carriers and Korea Eximbank (KEXIM) holding over 50% of its portfolio in fossil fuel carriers, South Korea faces severe financial vulnerabilities. Critically, as an Export Credit Agency (ECA), KEXIM's actual risk exposure is understated in this analysis, as ECAs bear guarantee risks ignored in the research methodology to capture commercial banks’ risks. (UCL Report, p.31). 

2025 Update: KEXIM and Korean Public Financiers’ Financing Support for LNG Carriers (Not part of the original report) 

Data sources: 2015-2022 data from Korea National Assembly records (obtained 2023) and 2023-2025 data from Korea National Assembly member Cha Gyu-geun (obtained 2025) 

Korea Eximbank (KEXIM) Financing Overview (2015-2025) 

• Including loans and guarantees, over KRW 41 trillion in financial support provided for LNG carriers over the past decade 

• Among 35 shipping finance cases, 6 were without charter contracts, indicating direct exposure to market risks 

• Summary of totals (2015–2025): Loans KRW 12.99 trillion, Guarantees KRW 28.34 trillion, Total KRW 41.3 trillion