Putnam Lovell NBF Securities, the financial services investment bank, is set to expand its European and US mergers and acquisitions business despite cutting its global workforce by over 20%.

John Griff, president of Putnam Lovell NBF's US business, said the firm's M&A bankers were busier than they had been for some time. "The environment has been difficult for a couple of years, but we think it has already begun to change," he said.