Merrill Lynch has lost a second FTSE 100 broking mandate to Lehman Brothers in less than a month, after UK-listed private equity company 3i appointed Lehman Brothers alongside existing broker Dresdner Kleinwort.

Earlier this month UK retailer Tesco, also a constituent of the FTSE 100 index, dropped Merrill Lynch in favour of Lehman Brothers, while retaining Deutsche Bank and JP Morgan Cazenove.