Bear Stearns has led its first European equity offer for four years completing a Sfr30.5m (€20m) placement for Viel & Cie, the French inter-dealer broker that sold part of its stake in its Swiss-listed subsidiary.

The US investment bank was last bookrunner on an equity sale in Europe in September when it sold £300m (€442m) worth of shares in the UK's Shire Pharmaceuticals, according to Dealogic, the investment banking research firm.