Two of the most senior UK bankers at Merrill Lynch, Michael Marks and Paul Roy, are to leave the US investment bank in February next year.

Marks, one of the UK's leading stockbrokers, is retiring from Merrill Lynch where he was a vice president on the executive committee and chairman of its European and Middle Eastern operations, after more than 40 years in the securities industry. Roy, 55, an executive vice president and co-president of global markets and investment markets, is leaving to set up his own business venture and spend more time with his young family of six.