Hegseth’s Broker Reportedly Sought To Invest Millions in Defense Contractors in Run-Up To War

AP Photo/Omar Havana

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth‘s broker reportedly sought to invest millions of dollars in major defense contractors during the run-up to the Iran war.

In the weeks leading up to the initial Feb. 28 attack on Iran, Hegseth’s financial broker inquired about a multimillion-dollar investment in BlackRock’s Defense Industrials Active ETF, according to the Financial Times.

Formally called the iShares Defense Industrials Active ETF (IDEF), BlackRock launched the exchange-traded fund in May 2025. It invests primarily in global defense, aerospace, and security-related companies.

The Financial Times cited three people familiar with the incident, who claimed the inquiry arrived on behalf of a “high-profile potential client” and was “flagged internally at BlackRock.”

BlackRock, Morgan Stanley, and Hegseth have yet to comment on the matter.

The fund is designed to help investors “pursue growth opportunities by investing in companies that may benefit from increased government spending on defense and security amid geopolitical fragmentation and economic competition,” per BlackRock’s official website.

Among the holdings of the IDEF are companies that count the Department of Defense among its top customers, according to The Financial Times.

The outlet also found that Hegseth’s investment did not go through because the fund was too new and not yet available for Morgan Stanley’s clients to pursue.

Hegseth reportedly earned $4.6 million over two years while at Fox News and another $1 million in speaking engagements.

The news comes amid growing scrutiny of highly profitable trades made in prediction and financial markets ahead of major policy decisions by President Donald Trump‘s administration.

On March 23, Trump called Hegseth “the first” to advocate for the Iran war.

“And Pete, I think you were the first one to speak up,” Trump said. “And you said, ‘Let’s do it, because you can’t let them have a nuclear weapon.’ So, we are now having really good discussions. They started last night, uh, little bit the night before that. And uh, I think they’re, you know, I think they’re very good. They want peace to– they’ve agreed they will not have a nuclear weapon, you know etc., etc., but we’ll see. You have to get it done. But I would say there’s a very good chance.”

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