By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, July 27 -- When the International Monetary Fund's mission chief for Spain James Daniel held an embargoed (until now) press call Friday morning, he was asked about the flame out of Bankia, which was chaired by former IMF chief Rodrigo Rato.
While not followed up on the call, Rato's and now the IMF's role raise questions about the need for safeguards given the revolving door through which former IMF officials pass. Can former IMF-ers benefit from bail outs or "programs" of the the IMF?
The story of Bankia and its IPO is an ugly and extensive one. The global co-ordinators on the deal were Deutsche Bank -- which, as Inner City Press has noted, has a former official now on the Federal Reserve Board -- J.P. Morgan, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, and UBS.
The retail underwriters on the retail tranche were Bankinter, Sabadell and Barclays, now of LIBOR fame.
L'affaire DSK garnered worldwide media coverage. But what of financial scandals involving former IMF officials? Watch this site.
