The appointment is subject to regulatory approval, and he will take over from Antonio Lorenzo who is due to retire next year.
Lorenzo has been in the role for nearly seven years and prior to that worked at Lloyds Banking group for nearly 12 years.
Barua joins from HSBC where he worked for around three years and was most recently global head of strategy and a member of their group executive committee.
Before joining HSBC, Barua worked at McKinsey & Company for over six years across two separate stints, and also spent nearly seven years as managing director for UK and Swiss Bank research at AB Bernstein.
He has also held roles at Standard Chartered Bank and Citigroup.
‘A wealth of experience’
Charlie Nunn, group chief executive officer at Lloyds Banking Group, said: “Chira has a wealth of financial services experience and I’m delighted that he has agreed to join Lloyds and help us build a better future for our customers.”
He continued that Lorenzo had “overseen an extraordinary amount of strategic change and growth” and played a “critical role” in stabilising Lloyds during the financial crisis.
Nunn added that during his tenure as Scottish Widows CEO its assets under management has nearly doubled from £130bn in 2015 to around £210bn now.
“Antonio came to me some time ago to let me know he intended to retire, but very kindly agreed to stay and work with me to reshape the organisation, giving me time to search for a successor and ensure we have a smooth transition period for Chira,” he noted.
Scott Wheway, chairman of Scottish Widows, continued: “On behalf of the board, I would like to thank Antonio for his leadership over the last seven years, where he has overseen the complete transformation and subsequent growth of the business, supported by a bold technology strategy and a number of strategic acquisitions.
“I’m pleased that, subject to regulatory approval, Chira Barua will take on the role and his appointment will ensure Scottish Widows continues to grow and support customers as a core part of Lloyds Banking Group.”
Lorenzo added: “Chira is joining a great team at Lloyds and Scottish Widows, with exciting growth plans and a clear purpose, and I wish him all the best.
“I’m hugely proud to have been part of the story of this business and will be watching the next part of the journey with great interest.”
