A government push to make France more "finance-friendly" is raising Paris' chances of attracting Brexit-fleeing banks from London although it is raising its game at a late stage in the process, a group of senior financial industry executives said.

Eager to keep Frankfurt from getting the bulk of jobs that leave London, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe outlined on Friday plans to ease the financial sector's wage bills and vowed to keep the regulatory burden competitive.

Executives at a business conference in southern France this weekend said the election in May of former investment banker Emmanuel Macron had brought a night-and-day change in attitude toward their industry.