Signs emerge that lenders are beginning to provide acquisition financing again and the global financial markets are slowly starting to stabilise.

A series of positive stories in the corporate finance sector this week suggest the merest of green shoots could be appearing for mergers and acquisitions.

M&A deals held firm in Q2 2009, despite only 257 transactions taking place during the period a 66% fall compared to a year earlier. Total deal value was 21.1bn, a 61% fall.

There is little doubt that the UK M&A market is still struggling and the figures in this report verify this. But there are some more positive signs on the horizon as lenders begin to provide acquisition financing again and as the global financial markets slowly begin to stabilise, said Hugh Mathew-Jones, head of corporate finance at PKF.

The UK mid-market has also proved to be relatively resilient with deals valued under 250m making up 25% of the total transaction valuations for the period in the first half of the year which was the largest proportion attributable to the mid-cap space over the past three years.

RSM Bentley Jennison has appointed Stuart Marcy as corporate finance partner to lead the London and South East mergers and acquisition team after poaching him from Smith & Williamson.

The firm is taking the bold move of investing heavily in the service line in preparation for the M&A market picking up again when the recession lifts.

And corporate finance boutique BCMA Corporate sold Jack Ellis, the company that makes bullet proof vests used by soap star Ross Kemp and others for the TV series Ross Kemp in Afghanistan.