Two of the handful of directors left at Morgan Grenfell Private Equity, the beleaguered Deutsche Bank-owned private equity firm, are planning to leave, just as the talks for its own buy-out hit a critical phase.

A source close to the firm said that two unnamed directors had been sounding out other private equity firms with a view to jumping ship. It is understood they were pitching themselves as a potential team hire. However, the pair were uncovered by their fellow directors, who spotted their colleagues' appointment with a rival firm in their electronic diaries.