Morgan Stanley is set to miss out on lucrative advisory fees on one of Europe's largest potential takeovers this year, after stepping down from the defence mandate for Hungarian oil company Mol, which is the subject of a €14bn ($19.7bn) hostile offer.

Morgan Stanley dropped out of the defence mandate for Mol in July, leaving UBS as the Hungarian company's sole adviser against an unsolicited offer from Austrian energy rival OMV. However, Morgan Stanley retains a general advisory mandate.