In short: governments buying weapons from other governments increasingly ask the seller's country to help pay for them. Export credit agencies (ECAs) do this by lending directly or by guaranteeing bank loans to the buyer. Defence sits outside the OECD rules that govern civil export credit, so each agency follows its own policy. The result is a fast-growing market led by UK Export Finance, Korea's KEXIM and K-SURE, and the European agencies.
Why defence is different
The OECD Arrangement on officially supported export credits sets minimum premiums, maximum tenors and repayment profiles for civil exports. It does not apply to military equipment. In defence, an agency can lend for longer, at a different price and on a different repayment profile, within its government's policy and risk appetite.
That freedom is matched by tighter national control. In the UK, the largest defence deals have needed a published ministerial direction letting UK Export Finance go beyond its normal risk limits: for Typhoon aircraft for Qatar in 2018 (up to £5bn) and for Poland's NAREW air defence programme in 2024. UKEF's 2024-25 annual report records a £7.7bn commitment for NAREW.
The rest of this guide covers the buyer credit, direct lending and guarantee structures, ministerial directions, and the diligence points for banks lending under ECA cover. It is free with a work email, along with the register downloads and the in-house counsel tools.
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Questions
Do the OECD export credit rules apply to defence?
No. The OECD Arrangement on officially supported export credits does not apply to military equipment, so agencies are not bound by its minimum premiums or maximum tenors for defence deals. Each country sets its own policy.
Can US EXIM finance defence exports?
Generally not. EXIM's charter bars it from supporting defence articles and services, with narrow exceptions, including non-lethal dual-use items whose main use is civilian. US government support for allied purchases usually comes through Foreign Military Financing instead.
What is a ministerial direction in UK export finance?
A written instruction from a minister that lets UK Export Finance support a deal beyond its normal risk appetite, used for large defence contracts such as Typhoon for Qatar and Poland's NAREW air defence programme. The direction is published.
Sources
- OECD: Arrangement on officially supported export credits and sector understandings
- GOV.UK: UK Export Finance support for export of air defence systems to Poland (ministerial direction)
- GOV.UK: UK Export Finance support for export of Typhoon aircraft to Qatar
- GOV.UK: £1.6bn deal for air defence missiles for Ukraine (March 2025)
- BGK release (via EAPB): international financing for modernisation of the Polish Army (January 2026)
- GAO-25-108524: EXIM dual-use exports (August 2025)
General information on public law and market practice as at 28 Oct 2026, not legal advice on any transaction.