Merrill Lynch has appointed Kevan Watts, currently chairman of the Asia-Pacific region, as co-head of global investment banking based in Europe.

Watts, who joined Merrill Lynch in New York in 1981, will work alongside Dan Bayly, who had previously been sole head of global investment banking. The move to London for Watts, comes just days after Merrill suffered the blow of Jack Levy, head of mergers and acquisitions, leaving for rival Goldman Sachs.