Ex-IMF chief on trial again, now over Spanish bank flotation

Spain's National Court is beginning a massive trial over alleged fraud in the stock market listing of Bankia, a financial giant that was bailed out during the country's economic crisis.

Former Ineternational Monetary Fund chief Rodrigo Rato, who was Bankia's chairman between 2010 and 2012, is among 35 defendants accused of fraud and falsifying financial statements in relation to the bank's 2011 flotation.

Prosecutors are seeking five years of imprisonment for Rato, who is already serving a 4½-year prison sentence for misusing Bankia's corporate credit card.

Bankia initially reported a 2011 profit of 309 million euros ($351 million) but months later showed a 3 billion-euro loss. It was nationalized a year later after a 22 billion-euro rescue.

Rato had been a leading conservative minister before he became IMF chief from 2004 to 2007.