Bank of France head Francois Villeroy de Galhau told Le Monde newspaper in an interview published on Monday that he welcomed Switzerland's move for UBS to buy Credit Suisse, and that French banks were stable and profitable.

"Regarding Credit Suisse, this is a bank which for several years now had problems regarding its business model and profitability, as well as insufficient internal controls. The Swiss authorities were well mobilised this weekend to tie it up to UBS, which is a welcome solution," Villeroy told Le Monde.

"The French banking industry is concentrated around six big banks which all have solid and profitable business models, strong control on their risks, and a high degree of regulatory compliance," said Villeroy, who is also a member of the European Central Bank (ECB).

"To once again state the obvious, French banks are solid," he added. (Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Leigh Thomas; Editing by Jamie Freed)