Charles Peal has left Legal & General Ventures where he was chief executive, to form a private equity partnership with Bank of Scotland's Colin Leslie.

The move comes less than two months after Bank of Scotland decided to spin off its fund management business, which included a £550m portfolio of mezzanine loans and private equity investments. Bank of Scotland is now looking to hive off this portfolio and help create a fund-of-funds business. This could be the first piece of business that Peal and Leslie, chief executive of Bank of Scotland's structured banking division, are awarded.