In an attempt to shore up its balance sheet, hit hard by recession and rising levels of bad loans, Sweden's Swedbank Monday surprisingly unveiled a fully underwritten 15 billion Swedish crown (or $2.1 billion) rights issue.

Elaborating on its second cash call in less within a year, that too fully unwritten, Swedbank - one of the Nordic banks bearing the brunt of the distraught Baltic states' economies - said that the cash infusion will not only help the bank carry on lending to markets in these difficult times, but also stabilize its financial traction without having to depend on state aid.

Saying that Swedbank has already raised $1.5 billion through a rights issue, CEO Michael Wolf told reporters that the bank continues to stand by its outlook for all its markets. Wolf said: "Nothing has changed in our view on the macro outlook or management expectation regarding the development of Swedbank looking forward."

The bank stated that subscription for and underwriting in 46.6 percent of the rights issue will come from its current shareholders, with the remaining 53.4 percent will come from BofA Merrill Lynch and Credit Suisse.

Swedbank Board Chairman Carl Eric Stalberg said that the new capital raising will help fortify the bank's competitive position in its four home markets - Sweden, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.