It turned out that Fed Chairman Jerome Powell was duped by two Russians who introduced himself as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
In the video shared in the Russian media, it is seen that Powell gave some information about monetary policy, thinking that he was meeting with Zelenskyy. According to the video, Powell says he has plans for two more rate hikes.
Speaking to ABC News, a Fed spokesperson confirmed the incident that occurred in January.
"This was a friendly meeting and took place in a context where we support the Ukrainian people at this difficult time. No sensitive or confidential information was shared with the other party."
People who called and "joked" Powell seem to have asked some questions about Powell's inflation forecasts and the Bank of Russia. There are 15 minutes of interviews in the videos shared piece by piece.
Although the FED has confirmed the incident, it has not yet confirmed the videos. According to the Fed spokesperson, the videos may have been played over.
It was stated that the people who pranked Powell were Putin supporters Vladimir Kuznetsov and Alexei Stolyarov. The duo had managed to deceive many foreign leaders before.
The incident is thought to increase security concerns within the FED.
The FED reported that the incident was reported to the judicial authorities.
This is one of the verified videos. Powell talks about his plans for two rate hikes in January.
