City: Pushy Swiss

SWISS BANK Corporation is carving out quite a name for itself in the City for innovative, mould-breaking and can-do investment banking. In the process, it is angering quite a number of established houses. First came its ingenious off-market scheme to enable the Keswick brothers to lift their share stake in Trafalgar House. At the same time, the scheme enabled Trafalgar to launch a pounds 211m rescue rights issue. Kleinworts, Trafalgar's established adviser, found it difficult to disguise its annoyance at being so cleverly trumped.

BZW is equally angered by Swiss Bank's successful bid to muscle in on the market for enhanced scrip dividend schemes. Swiss Bank has been able to offer a cheaper service than BZW for virtually all of them. What next? Last week, Swiss Bank began market-making in the shares of Kwik Save, the supermarket group partly owned by the Keswicks. I've no idea what's going on, but given the recent record, it's surely no coincidence?