Banca Leonardo, the investment bank set up by ex-Lazard rainmaker Gerrardo Braggiotti, revealed net profits of €21m ($29m) for the first half of this year as it appointed a former chief executive of German pharmaceutical group Schering as its new chairman.

Giuseppe Vita, who left Schering to join Lazard's supervisory board in Germany in 2001, replaces Piero Barucci as chairman of Banca Leonardo. Barucci, a former Italian finance minister, left Leonardo in March to become head of Italy's anti-trust body.