The defence investment discussed by Pete Hegseth's broker did not ultimately go ahead. -AP
A broker for US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth attempted to make a big investment in major defence companies in the weeks leading up to the US-Israeli attack on Iran, the Financial Times reported.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
Hegseth's broker at Morgan Stanley contacted BlackRock in February, about making a multimillion-dollar investment in the asset manager's Defense Industrials Active ETF, shortly before the US launched military action against Tehran, the FT report added, citing three people familiar with the matter.
According to the report, the investment discussed by Hegseth's broker did not ultimately go ahead as the fund, which launched in May last year, was not yet available for Morgan Stanley clients to buy.
The FT report did not say how much discretion the broker had to make investments on Hegseth's behalf, or whether the defence secretary knew what the broker was doing.
The Pentagon said the report was incorrect and demanded a retraction.
"This allegation is entirely false and fabricated," chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said on X.
BlackRock declined to comment, while Morgan Stanley did not immediately respond.
The report on the investment attempt comes amid a wider scrutiny of trades made in financial and prediction markets ahead of US President Donald Trump's major policy decisions.
Some of these decisions have been preceded by well-timed bets, leading some experts to raise questions about whether information had somehow leaked ahead of time.
