** Shares of brokerage firm BGC Group BGC.O slide as much as 7.5%, last down 6.1% at $9.54

** CEO Howard Lutnick announced Thursday he intends to divest his interests in Cantor, BGC and Newmark upon U.S. Senate confirmation to comply with government ethics rules

** President-elect Donald Trump earlier this week picked Lutnick to run the Commerce Department

** Lutnick says he does not expect any arrangement that involves selling shares on the open market

** Wall Street veteran expects to recommend BGC board that John Abularrage, Jean-Pierre Aubin and Sean Windeatt be named co-CEOs of BGC effective upon his confirmation by the U.S. Senate

** Piper Sandler says loss of Lutnick's leadership is a net negative for BGC overall, but it is confident that new leadership can keep the business humming

** Adds that proposed new leadership team already handles much of the day to day for BGC and can continue building upon the strong momentum in its core brokerage business

** As of last close, BGC shares up 40.7% YTD

(Reporting by Arasu Kannagi Basil in Bengaluru)

((ArasuKannagi.Basil@thomsonreuters.com))