Slaughter and May and Linklaters are among a host of top firms advising as a group of former Barclays bankers set up an offshore company to manage $12.3bn (£7.4bn) of the bank’s most toxic debt.

In addition to the magic circle duo, Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom, Sullivan & Cromwell and Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft have all won roles in the creation of Protium Finance, a new hedge fund registered in the Cayman Islands.