France on Wednesday overtook Britain to become the fifth largest economy in the world after the pound suffered a considerable setback following United Kingdom's June 23 vote to exit the European Union, reported Reuters. After the dramatic Brexit vote, the pound fell overnight below 1.17 euros. On Wednesday, the pound plummeted to a 31-year low.

According to the International Monetary Fund, with the pound falling against the euro, Britain's GDP figure stood at 2.172 trillion euros for 2015, while the GDP of France was 2.182 trillion euros during the same period. The two economies have competed closely in the past as well as well. Both the countries have a similar population size.