Buyout giant Blackstone lines up top job for Sunak lieutenant
Lord Petitgas, a former Wall Street banker, is being considered for a senior role at the US private equity giant. He stepped down from his position advising Mr Sunak following last year's general election defeat for the Conservative Party.
Mr Sunak hired Lord Petitgas as his business and investment tsar in 2023, after he spent three decades at Morgan Stanley. Lord Petitgas ran Morgan Stanley's investment bank from 2007 before becoming head of international in 2018.
French-born Lord Petitgas – who was nominated for a life peerage last year by Mr Sunak's government – had ties with Blackstone during his time in Downing Street, organising a 2023 business summit which counted the company as a key backer.
The former banker was Mr Sunak's key link with the UK business community, orchestrating meetings and round tables with leading FTSE 100 bosses.
It comes after speculation that Mr Sunak was also being lined up for a top role at Blackstone, which is one of the world's largest investment funds. It was founded in the 1980s and later created fund manager BlackRock, which was spun off.
Mr Sunak was last year photographed with a shovel breaking ground at Blackstone's new Mayfair headquarters alongside the private equity giant's billionaire founder Stephen Schwarzman.
During the event, Mr Sunak joked 'where's my office?' – prompting speculation that he could be on course to join the company once he left government.
Mr Sunak is also reportedly friendly with Blackstone's Lionel Assant, its most senior leader in Europe, both having worked together at Goldman Sachs when they were young men starting out as junior analysts.
However, Mr Sunak has since joined Goldman Sachs as an adviser, returning to the bank in his first major role outside of politics since losing last year's election.
Blackstone has stakes in numerous UK businesses including the National Exhibition Centre Group and Haven Holidays. It previously owned Merlin Entertainments, the parent company of amusement parks and attractions including Alton Towers and Madame Tussauds.
Europe is a key market for Blackstone, with Mr Schwarzman pledging to invest at least $500bn across the continent over the next decade. Its new HQ, overlooking Berkeley Square, is set to house 500 staff.
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