Henri Chermont, one of the biggest names in the French broking community, has quit Merrill Lynch as head of French equities to join SG Securities in Paris.

The appointment is a coup for SG Securities, which this year launched a restructuring and expansion of its European equities business. At SG, Chermont will become head of European equity research and will join the equities management committee. Alongside Geoffrey de Beauregard, he will effectively co-head SG European research, sales and trading business, reporting to Yves Tuloup, head of SG Securities.