Another indignity for BC Partners, the private equity whizz-kids who took the inspired decision to buy estate agency Foxtons right at the top of the property market: they’ve been forced to cede control of the estate agency to the banks, as part of a restructuring deal to slash its debts. If it wasn’t already clear what a stinker of a deal Foxtons was, it certainly is now. But since these unethical financiers and pushy estate agents are considered to be among the chief culprits for the credit crunch, sympathy will probably be in short supply.

For those whose properties are still managed by Foxtons, the business is still being run as per normal and they need not fear about their properties being mismanaged in anyway. The estate agency business is still thriving but on lower profit margins. BC is still the biggest shareholders of the estate agency.