About 10 potential buyers, including Schroders, have submitted first-round proposals for New Star, the struggling fund management group.

Other parties that have submitted indicative proposals for the asset manager, which in December agreed a debt-for-equity swap with its banks, include Henderson, Gartmore and Neptune Investment Management. Aberdeen Asset Management has taken an opportunistic interest after its £200m share-based acquisition of Credit Suisse’s traditional fund management business.