Pascal Boris has left London for Geneva after “15 fantastic years”. During that time, the Frenchman, who until recently headed BNP Paribas’ UK operation, became an enthusiastic Londoner. The locals may complain about the traffic, trains and house prices; Mr Boris, who is now running the Swiss arm of the French investment bank, has nothing but praise for the capital. “London has the vibrancy of New York but the culture of Europe. It’s a unique combination,” he says.

Mr Boris chaired the French Chamber of Commerce in Britain and co-founded the Cercle d’outre-Manche, a think-tank made up of French residents in the UK who describe themselves as “culturally French and economically British”. Writing in the Financial Times in January, Mr Boris and Arnaud Vaissie, the think-tank’s other founder, exhorted their compatriots across the Channel to learn from the UK’s openness. “Britain’s acceptance of the world as it is means seeing globalisation as an opportunity,” they wrote.