AIG CEO Martin Sullivan says that after raising more than $13 billion as of last week, the insurer now plans to drum up about $20 billion total to fight off two quarters’ worth of losses in the wake of the subprime debacle. He made his announcement today in London, where yet another company is scrambling to raise several billion to fund a takeover that it’s increasingly finding hard to handle.

Imperial Tobacco Group Plc reported a 45 percent drop in first-half profit on costs for buying Altadis SA and will sell 4.9 billion pounds ($10 billion) of stock to help fund the takeover, more than analysts estimated.

Investors will have the right to buy one new share for every two held as of May 15, Imperial said today. The Bristol, England-based maker of Lambert & Butler and Davidoff cigarettes will sell 338.7 million new shares for 1,475 pence each, 44 percent less than yesterday's closing price in London trading.

Imperial, which is selling stock to keep its investment- grade credit rating, fell as much as 4.4 percent in London trading. Chief Financial Officer Bob Dyrbus said the rights issue was bigger than expected because the rising euro inflated the value of debt taken on with the takeover. Imperial said Altadis' performance since the deal is "encouraging," though integrating the company will cost more than previously expected.

"There is a big wave of capital increases," said Antoine Beaugendre, an equity strategist at Societe Generale SA in Paris. "When the environment is more uncertain, big companies seek to assure their long-term financing. Companies perceive pretty negative signals on the macroeconomic environment."

The euro has increased 19 percent against the British pound since July 18, when Imperial announced the purchase. Costs related to the Altadis acquisition also cut 117 million pounds from profit, more than the 110 million pounds Imperial Tobacco had forecast. Erik Bloomquist, an analyst at JPMorgan Chase & Co., had estimated Imperial would raise just 4.4 billion pounds.

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