Nordea, the Swedish banking group, has converted a bond relationship into a lead equity role on a €450m ($557m) rights issue for M-Real, the Finnish paper manufacturer. Citigroup is a joint bookrunner. The rights are priced at a 76% discount.

Nordea has never led an equity issue for the company but has been involved in almost all of its most recent bond deals, according to Dealogic, the investment banking research provider.