Fortis, the Belgian company that is part of a consortium bidding for ABN Amro, is issuing stock to current shareholders at a hefty discount to drive forward the ABN deal under fragile market conditions.

Fortis shares will be sold at €15 each, which represents a 43.7% discount on yesterday's closing price of €26.62. The price is also 31.7% below the market value that the stock would be expected to command after the sale.