Lagarde Takes Over IMF

A former French finance minister replaces a former French finance minister at the top of the International Monetary Fund.

The International Monetary Fund has a new boss today, with Christine Lagarde assuming the position of managing director of one of the world's leading financial institutions. Lagarde, a lawyer by training, is the first woman and the second consecutive French finance minister to lead the IMF. Lagarde beat out Mexico's central bank chief Augustin Carstens for the gig, in which she'll be paid close to $500,000 a year for the next five years. The previous chief, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, resigned in May after being charged with the sexual assault and forcible confinement of a New York chambermaid. However, in recent days, that case against Strauss-Kahn has fallen apart, with sources indicating the charges could be dropped any day now.