When former Barclays investment bank chief, Rich Ricci, took the reins at City broker Panmure Gordon two years ago, he promised to get “back to basics” at the firm that was struggling to stem losses of tens of millions of dollars as it expanded beyond its roots.

Ex-Barclays boss Bob Diamond, whose investment firm bought Panmure in 2017 with backing from the Qatari sovereign wealth fund, had turned to former lieutenant Ricci to revive the fortunes of the City broker that had lost nearly £35m over the previous two years as it looked to transform itself into a “21st-century merchant bank”.