Stumble into the vaulted atrium of any City firm recom- and the chances are you will find all manner of zany goings-on as wealthy partners seek to assuage their corporate guilt by raising a few pennies for charity.

City leviathan Ashurst is currently looking to raise cash to buy buffalo for a school in India which recently had its animals stolen by local rustlers. At several thousands pounds a head, the creatures sure aren’t cheap.