Lehman Brothers, which last led a European flotation three years ago, is in a strong position to win a role in the flotation of Belgacom, the Belgian telecoms firm estimated to be worth €10bn ($11.69bn).

Lehman was last a bookrunner on a European initial public offering in September 2000 when Jobline International, a Swedish recruitment firm, raised Skr700m (€83.8m) in an IPO, according to Dealogic, the investment banking research firm.