Nov 14 (Reuters) - Blackstone appointed Franck

Petitgas as a senior managing director and vice chairman of

Europe, it said on Friday, to strengthen strategic initiatives

and client engagement in the region.

Petitgas, who will take up the newly created role in

January, joins Blackstone after 30 years at Morgan Stanley ( MS )

, where he held several roles including head of Morgan

Stanley International and co-head of the firm's Global

Investment Banking, Blackstone said in a statement.

Following his retirement from Morgan Stanley ( MS ) in 2023,

Petitgas was named chief business adviser by former British

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, and in the following year, he was

appointed to the House of Lords.

Blackstone currently sees opportunities to invest over $500

billion in European assets over the next decade.