Bank of America Merrill Lynch edges ahead of JP Morgan Cazenove in battle of FTSE 100 brokers
Bank of America Merrill Lynch has edged ahead of JP Morgan Cazenove to lead the battle for FTSE 100 clients as Wall Street banks continue to dominate corporate broking in the City.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch gained two new clients in the blue chip index in the three months to February, giving it a total of 29 firms, according to data firm Adviser Rankings.
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Three of the broker’s companies – Auto Trader, Hikma Pharmaceuticals and Spirax Serco – were promoted to the FTSE 100 in December, while Royal Mail was demoted.
Morgan Stanley drew level with UBS in third place after it was appointed by oil services giant Wood Group.
JP Morgan Cazenove remained on 27 and also topped the FTSE 250 with 77 clients, adding Vivo Energy and Aveva to its cohort.
Numis Securities gained five new clients to strengthen its position as the most prolific broker with 210 UK stock market companies.
The UK investment bank also became the leading broker for the FTSE’s financial sector.
When it came to law firms, Slaughter and May came out on top, representing 35 companies in the FTSE 100.
Brunswick led the way for the City spinners, with 23 FTSE 100 firms but FTI Consulting topped the overall client table, with 155 listed companies.
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FTI drew level with Finsbury after poaching the London Stock Exchange from its close rival, closing a gap of eight FTSE 100 firms between the pair just five years ago.
UBS topped the table for financial advisers, with 14 clients from the blue chip index.