Deutsche Bank is finally preparing to roll Morgan Grenfell Private Equity, its troublesome private equity operation, into DB Capital Partners, the bank's main private equity operation, as forecast by Financial News last December.

Sir Robert Smith, MGPE's founder and chief executive once again following Graham Hutton's ousting last month, will seek investors' approval for the plan in September. It will probably be the final test of Smith's fire-fighting capabilities in his time at Deutsche. He is credited with turning round Deutsche Asset Management after the Peter Young affair.