Nine investment banks are set to share fees in excess of €6bn ($7.1bn), after Aventis, the Franco-German pharmaceuticals firm, agreed an increased €55bn takeover offer from Sanofi-Synthélabo, its French rival.

The biggest winners are the lead advisers to both companies. BNP Paribas and Merrill Lynch advised Sanofi, while Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Rothschild ran the defence for Aventis, which secured a 31.4% premium for the company's shareholders.