Merrill Lynch has put itself in pole position to lead an €8bn ($10.3bn) issue of new shares by Porsche, should the German luxury car maker move ahead with its plan to build a warchest to fund acquisitions over the next five years.

Porsche, which yesterday said pre-tax profits in the 12 months to July surged 70% to €2.1bn, revealed it will seek shareholder approval at its annual meeting on January 26 to boost its authorised share capital by €22.75m from €45.5m, an increase by half of its outstanding share capital.