Spanish judge asks Lazard for info on payment to ex-IMF chief Rato

MADRID (Reuters) - A Spanish High Court judge has asked investment bank Lazard (LAZAR.UL) to provide information on a 6 million euro ($7.5 million) payment to ex-IMF boss Rodrigo Rato when he was head of lender Bankia (BKIA.MC) in 2011, a court order showed on Monday.

Rato, who worked for Lazard between stints as head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Bankia, has been accused of improper management as part of a wider probe into misuse of company credit cards at Bankia and its predecessor Caja Madrid.

Rato has denied any wrongdoing.

In his testimony for the credit card scandal, Rato said the money from Lazard was the result of him cashing in on rights to shares he had received from the investment bank in 2008.

Lazard did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

Lazard advised Bankia's initial public offering under Rato in 2011, just a year before the Spanish bank needed a 22.5-billion-euro state rescue.

Rato, also a former deputy prime minister and economy minister under the previous administration of the ruling People's Party, lost his advisory job at Spain's largest bank Santander (SAN.MC) last month when it disbanded its international advisory board.

(1 US dollar = 0.8010 euro)

(Reporting by Rodrigo de Miguel; Writing by Tracy Rucinski; Editing by Sarah White and Mark Potter)