US Department of Defense calls for retraction of report alleging broker sought multimillion-dollar investment for Hegseth.
Published On 31 Mar 2026
The United States Department of Defense has demanded the retraction of a newspaper report alleging that a broker for defence chief Pete Hegseth tried to make a big investment in weapons corporations within the run-up to the war on Iran.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell demanded the “immediate” retraction on Monday after the Financial Times reported that a wealth supervisor for the defence secretary contacted BlackRock about making a multimillion-dollar investment in a defence-related fund within the weeks main as much as the war.
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Hegseth’s broker at Morgan Stanley finally didn’t go forward with the investment within the exchange-traded fund, whose holdings embody Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, as a result of it was not but out there for buy on the time, the Financial Times reported, citing three unnamed sources.
“This allegation is entirely false and fabricated. Neither Secretary Hegseth nor any of his representatives approached BlackRock about any such investment,” Parnell stated in a submit on social media.
“This is yet another baseless, dishonest smear designed to mislead the public.”
Hegseth and his division “remain unwavering in their commitment to the highest standards of ethics and strict adherence to all applicable laws and regulations”, Parnell stated.
Al Jazeera couldn’t independently verify the Financial Times report.
“We stand by our reporting and have included a Pentagon spokesperson’s response in the article,” a Financial Times spokesperson stated.
The Defense Department didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark despatched outdoors of common enterprise hours.
BlackRock declined to remark. Morgan Stanley didn’t instantly reply to inquiries.
The report comes amid scrutiny of well-timed trades in monetary and prediction markets that have prompted hypothesis that figures with insider data could also be profiting off of US President Donald Trump’s war plans.
While the Financial Times reported that the tried investment by Hesgeth’s broker didn’t go forward, the defence chief wouldn’t have made cash on such a purchase order within the month for the reason that war started.
While the iShares Defense Industrials Active ETF has risen greater than 25 p.c over the previous yr, it has fallen almost 13 p.c for the reason that US and Israel launched strikes on Iran on February 28.
