Powell Addresses Access to Fed Payment Systems

(Reuters) – Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Tuesday stated he does not believe that Elon Musk or his Department of Government Efficiency team have attempted to access the Fed’s secure payment systems.

During a Senate Banking Committee hearing, Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock of Georgia asked, “Will you commit to report to this committee, majority and minority, immediately should you become aware of any such attempt by Elon Musk or DOGE to pierce the Fed’s independence or to access its protected systems?”

Powell responded, “Yes.”

This exchange comes after reports of Musk’s associates at the Treasury Department trying to gain access to the federal payment system, which manages over $6 trillion in annual U.S. government disbursements.