After recent elections in Europe, changing political tides have undermined French hopes that Paris could catch up with London as a regional financial centre.
Even ahead of these events, many of the largest European Union-based investment banks – including French banks – have been growing their London-based staff. After some relatively small initial people moves post-Brexit, some UK headcounts at French and other EU-based corporate and investment banks are bigger today than before the UK's exit from the European Union. That is despite cost-cutting and increased attempts by governments to lure bankers to the continent.
This May, in one of the last acts of the previous French parliament, France passed a law designed to boost Paris as a financial centre by, among other measures, making it easier to lay off highly paid staff. Momentum behind the EU’s Capital Markets Union project was also growing, largely under French leadership.
Only a few weeks later, the dynamic has changed dramatically.
Since
