<p>IMF chief Christine Lagarde today said she is under official investigation for negligence in a French corruption probe that dates back to her days as finance minister.<br /><br /></p>.<p>In a statement after a fourth round of questioning before magistrates, Lagarde said she was returning to her work in Washington later in the day and said the decision was "without basis."<br /><br />She and her former chief of staff face questions about their role in a 400 million-euro (USD 531 million) payment to a businessman.<br /><br />The payment was made to Bernard Tapie in a dispute with state-owned bank Credit Lyonnais over the botched sale of sportswear company Adidas.<br /><br />Critics have said the deal was too generous, and was symptomatic of the cozy relationship between money and power in France.</p>
<p>IMF chief Christine Lagarde today said she is under official investigation for negligence in a French corruption probe that dates back to her days as finance minister.<br /><br /></p>.<p>In a statement after a fourth round of questioning before magistrates, Lagarde said she was returning to her work in Washington later in the day and said the decision was "without basis."<br /><br />She and her former chief of staff face questions about their role in a 400 million-euro (USD 531 million) payment to a businessman.<br /><br />The payment was made to Bernard Tapie in a dispute with state-owned bank Credit Lyonnais over the botched sale of sportswear company Adidas.<br /><br />Critics have said the deal was too generous, and was symptomatic of the cozy relationship between money and power in France.</p>