09:26 AM EDT, 03/31/2026 (MT Newswires) -- (Update with BlackRock's ( BLK ) response to a request for comment in the last paragraph.)

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth's broker at Morgan Stanley ( MS ) contacted BlackRock ( BLK ) in February about making a multimillion-dollar investment in its Defense Industrials Active ETF shortly before the US launched military strikes against Iran, the Financial Times reported late Monday, citing three people familiar with the matter.

BlackRock ( BLK ) flagged the inquiry internally, the people reportedly told the FT. The fund's largest holdings include RTX (RTX), Lockheed Martin ( LMT ) and Northrop Grumman ( NOC ) , the report said.

A Defense Department spokesman, Sean Parnell, said on X that "this allegation is entirely false and fabricated. Neither Secretary Hegseth nor any of his representatives approached BlackRock ( BLK ) about any such investment. This is yet another baseless, dishonest smear designed to mislead the public. We demand an immediate retraction."

BlackRock ( BLK ) declined to comment to MT Newswires, while Morgan Stanley ( MS ) didn't immediately reply to a request for comment.

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