because france had feared germany for the previous 100 years as a result of the demographic slide of former relative to latter, of which the last grasp for dominance by france was the franco-prussian war. one does not cast aside a hundred years of decline especially after two world wars have just been fought on your front lawn. wiki ssums the situation up nicely (quoted below).
Britain is a financial hub for more reasons than just history, though that plays a large part. Not so long ago that position was occupied by New York, which goes to show how important the regulatory environment is. this along with that history, the ease of movement of people, language, culture and institutions all play their part.
Yes Britain will decline, all of the old west is declining relative to the 'new' east, and we will certainly decline all the faster if we integrate our financial sector regulation with that of europe.
You might be right about the timeline, I for one won't put any certainty on predictions cast decades into the future.
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