Varun Chandra

Spear’s Review

Like most left-of-centre political movements, Britain’s Labour party has rarely received a warm welcome from financial elites. Yet Keir Starmer, only the seventh Labour prime minister in British history, says he wants to square that circle by leading a proudly pro-business government. 

Will the reality match the rhetoric? One sign that suggests such a shift may be under way is the hiring of Varun Chandra – a former investment banker who has left his role as the head of an investigations and intelligence outfit to take up a role as the Labour government’s attaché to the financial world. 

Chandra isn’t a household name in Britain. Yet the 39-year-old is held in particularly high regard by many of London’s movers and shakers thanks to his stewardship of Hakluyt – a specialist advisory and consultancy firm staffed by former intelligence officers. He was already regarded as a master networker when he was appointed as its managing partner in 2019, aged just 34. And he must have done something right in the role; five years later, Hakluyt counts 15 of the 20 largest private equity firms among its client base. 

As well as accepting a substantial pay cut as a result of leaving Hakluyt for public service, Chandra also gave up his role on the board of trustees of the British Asian Trust, which he had taken up in 2021. 

His bonds with Labour were forged well over a decade ago, when he helped Tony Blair found his own private advisory business. His new boss, however, may be a rather tougher sell to the international business community. Mooted and rumoured changes to the tax regime have given many of Chandra’s old friends some cause for concern.

Given the parlous state of UK public finances, there is likely to be more bad news coming for high earners and wealth creators. If so, Chandra’s charm offensive will be much needed.