Two prominent Britons could play important parts in events on Wall Street today, as John Mack, a former president of Morgan Stanley, is expected to be announced today as making a triumphant return to the American investment bank as its chairman and chief executive, succeeding Philip Purcell, the man who forced him out in 2001.

The Morgan Stanley board was meeting in New York today, with an announcement imminent.

The New York Times, not an organ known for overstatement, described the move today as the conclusion to "an eight-year Wall Street drama that, with its themes of intrigue, banishment, mutiny and redemption, [that] gave what could have been just another boardroom putsch the feel of a Shakespeare play".

The appointment of Mr Mack will also mark a sharp volte face by the Morgan Stanley board. Director Charles Knight, who has headed the CEO search, stood by the board’s statement in mid-June that neither Mr Mack, nor other recently departed executives who had been instrumental in bringing down Mr Purcell, would be considered for the top job.

But on Monday, Mr Knight backtracked, confirming that Mr Mack is indeed a candidate for the top job. "It seems the board may have no other choice but to woo back the popular ex-president," said David Hendler, an analyst with Credit Sights. "Morgan Stanley’s board of directors needs to get the leadership question behind it in a quick and acceptable fashion."

For Mr Mack, a crucial point of discussion will be the composition of the Morgan Stanley board, since all but one director was selected by Mr Purcell. The board supported Purcell in a letter to investors and employees as recently as May 1.

On the board are Wall Street outsiders such as the dean of London Business School, Laura D’Andrea Tyson, and Howard Davies, a director at the London School of Economics.

It now is being widely suggested that Mr Mack may ask for the return of most of the eight former executives whose campaigning precipitated Mr Purcell's downfall.

The shift from full support to the radical decision to back Mr Mack took place on June 13, when Mr Purcell resigned under pressure. Once he departed, the board moved quickly to erase Mr Purcell’s design for Morgan Stanley.

Two factors may be weighing on the board. First, all the directors stand for election next spring. Secondly, by acting fast with a safe bet in John Mack, the board may head off more defections.

For Mr Mack, 60, who drove the 1997 merger with Mr Purcell and Dean Witter, his return will be seen as a resounding victory for the Morgan Stanley bankers and traders, whose revolt against Mr Purcell's leadership forced the board into action.

Mr Mack joined hedge fund Pequot Capital as chairman a year agon and previously held the CEO’s job at Credit Suisse First Boston. He had previously worked at Morgan Stanley for 30 years.

He is judged to be a forceful executive. But managing the rifts between in-fighting executives during the rule of his predecessor will be an extreme test.

Mr Mack must also decide whether he should sell off the slower-growing credit card and retail brokerage units that were originally part of Dean Witter. The performance gap between the firm's institutional securities division, the core of the original Morgan Stanley, and Dean Witter businesses lay at the root of the culture clash between executives.

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