Nordics

Swedish firm AR Packaging this week began marketing €240m of loans to fund its acquisition by CVC Partners from Ahlstrom Capital and Accent Equity.

SSAB, the Swedish steel company, announced on Wednesday morning that its Skr5bn (€536m) seven-for-eight rights issue, led by Crédit Agricole, Handelsbanken, Nordea and Swedbank, had been oversubscribed by 38%.

Norwegian renewable energy firm Statkraft has signed a Nkr11bn (€1.2bn) five year revolving credit facility with a group of banks.

This week's scorecard looks at the progress of Nordic agencies through their 2016 funding programmes.

Stadshypotek was lucky to raise €1bn of six year funding at 3bp over mid-swaps on Monday, a feat that leads said would not have been possible on Tuesday as markets deteriorated.

Covered bond volumes were higher this week than last even as mounting fears of a UK decision to leave the European Union lead to greater volatility and increased execution risk.

The Swedish covered bond law requiring issuers to hold a minimum overcollateralization ratio of 2% is expected to come into force on June 21.

Shares in AcadeMedia, which claims to be the largest education company in Europe, soared on Wednesday in heavy trading volume on the first day after its IPO, which a banker said achieved a "record high level of oversubscription".

The Swedish National Debt Office has cut its borrowing needs over the next two years by Skr16.5bn ($1.98bn), including a chop of Skr2bn to its foreign currency bond programme.

The Danish covered bond issuer extended its curve and priced a larger deal well inside where its inaugural five year was issued in March and with a fair oversubscription ratio.

Castellum, the Swedish property company, has completed its Skr6.3bn ($758m) rights issue, to partly finance its Skr13.4bn purchase of Norrporten.

An auction this month to settle 2014-form credit default swaps referencing Norske Skog will comprise separate auctions for all four maturity buckets, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association’s EMEA Determinations Committee (DC) has confirmed, but 2003 updated contracts will only be settled in the shortest dated of these auctions.