The Netherlands has traditionally been a strong and vibrant centre for shipfinance over the years, mainly based in the neighbouring cities of Rotterdam and Amsterdam.

ABN AMRO, ING, NIBC and German bank DVB all have shipfinance operations in the lowlands country.

Working out of Rotterdam, ABN AMRO has perhaps been the most expansive by quadrupling its shipping investment book to more than $9bn after it was drastically cut back in the financial turmoil that hit Dutch banking following the 2008 Leh­man Brothers collapse.

Despite