Paying £109m in fees for a £2.7bn deal looks indefensible. But strip out legal costs and an oddity and the banks get about £79m. That s still chunky, but the deal digs Invensys out of a potentially more costly liquidity trap.

At first glance, the £109m cost of the £2.7bn deal looks indefensible. But it includes legal costs and a premium for repurchasing bonds. Strip those out, and the banks get £63m. That s still pretty chunky, no matter how hard they are working for their money.