Arden Partners, the mid-cap broker, is preparing to cull five of its staff, three sources told Financial News, as several of its rivals take similar measures amid a tough trading environment for the smaller brokers.

Three analysts, including the well regarded retail analyst Nick Bubb, have been told that cost-cutting measures are required and that they have been selected for redundancy, the sources said. Two members of Arden's sales team are also up for possible redundancy. One source said the redundancies amounted to a "cull".