Resolution founder Clive Cowdery is to seek £1bn from investors in November as he steps up his efforts to profit from the turmoil among UK financial services companies.

Cowdery said he was raising the cash in a stock market flotation while unveiling John Tiner, former head of the City regulator, as his new chief executive and ex-HBOS finance director Phil Hodkinson, who retired in April, as a director.

They will oversee a drive into life assurance, banking, asset management, and general insurance sectors, where Cowdery hopes to engineer the merging of companies to benefit from economies of scale.

Cowdery, who intends to raise a total of £5bn over the next few years, to this end was rebuffed when he attempted to buy a stake in Bradford & Bingley in June and is reported to be eyeing up a bid for all or part of life insurer Friends Provident.

Cowdery and fellow directors are expected to invest the "majority of their available capital" in the business, a spokesman said yesterday.

Prudential, Standard Life, Royal London Asset Management are among the potential investors Cowdery claims to have had discussions with.

Cowdery added that his backers are likely to include existing shareholders of financial services companies who are in favour of restructuring them.