The former vice president of the Government and former president of Bankia Rodrigo Rato has exercised his right to the last word before the National Court left the judgment for judgment on the IPO of the financial institution. In his brief speech, Rato has repeatedly referred to the "regulator-supervisor" -the Bank of Spain-, to say in all cases that he acted "in line" with his opinions and from which "no criticism" was received .

"All of our decisions were contrasted with the opinions that the regulator-supervisor had on the same issues and we took them in line with those positions of the regulator-supervisor," he said in court.

Faced with the requests of eight and a half years in prison of the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office , Rato has also sought the protection of "the best legal and accounting financial firms in the world", which "constantly" advised those responsible for Bankia. He has also stressed that the entity had to adapt to three different regulatory changes. "We all apply them correctly in the opinion of the regulator-supervisor."

Finally, Rato has pointed out that if Bankia's trial has been held, it was because the Board of Directors that replaced him made certain decisions. But he did, he said, "for reasons of the future and not of the past, based on estimates of future regulatory changes." And "he was very right" in the new Council in doing so, he added, because the crisis was "much worse" in the years following his departure from the financial institution. His last sentence before asking the court "the acquittal" has been that as of today "Bankia, in relation to its balance, is worth less than when it went public."

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