Ahold, the Dutch retailer, whose credit rating was cut to junk status after a US accounting scandal, is raising €3bn ($3.5bn) through a rights issue. The fundraising is at the top end of a range announced three weeks ago.

At the beginning of this month Ahold said it expected to raise between €2.5bn and €3bn. ABN Amro Rothschild, Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan are joint global co-ordinators of the fully underwritten offer.