Until recently most of the business for investment banks and advisers in Central Europe has been coming from privatisations. But now that most of the region's economy is in private hands, this should begin to change. Although the mergers and acquisition market is still in its infancy, as the need for consolidation in the region increases, it could prove a lucrative piece of business for investment banks - particularly in a few years' time.

'M&A in Central Europe now mostly means A, but in two or three years there will be landslide of M deals as well,' says Adam Murza, an independent British adviser based in Poland, who used to head the Polish office for specialist investment bank Caspian.