“Michael Spencer in talks over slice of Bear Stearns equity team
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Michael Spencer, the City’s richest man, is in advanced talks to carve out the UK equities business of Bear Stearns, the stricken American investment bank according to Times. Spencer is looking to hire a team of about 25 staff from Bear, headed by Nicolo Brandolini d’Adda, the co-head of European equities
Although Bear has agreed to be bought by JPMorgan Chase, European equity sales and trading is an area in which there is a high degree of overlap between the two US banks, meaning that the new owner is expected to retain very few of Bear’s stockbrokers. UK equities are thought to account for about one third of Bear’s European stockbroking revenues.

Numis Securities, in which Mr Spencer holds an 11 per cent stake has 180 employees, said recently that it was “determined to grow the business organically in a contracyclical fashion” and would “exploit the volatility in the market to attract staff”.

Bear Stearns employs about 140 staff trading European equities in London. JPMorgan has not yet said how many of Bear’s employees it plans to keep. The acquisition will not formally complete until June 1

Source: Times 28/04