Federal Reserve Chairman Powell pranked into a phone call with Zelensky impersonator

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell earlier this year held a video chat with someone who pretended to be Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The video call occurred in January, and the two pranksters have been identified by The Washington Post as Vladimir Kuznetsov and Alexei Stolyarov, supporters of Russia President Vladimir Putin.

The newspaper reported that Russia State Television aired the video but did not say when. So it remained unclear Friday morning why the video is now being widely reported. 

The Federal Reserve has issued a statement about the virtual conversation about the economy and Russian having invaded Ukraine in which the agency said no confidential information was revealed.

“Chair Powell participated in a conversation in January with someone who misrepresented himself as the Ukrainian president,” an agency spokesperson wrote. “It was a friendly conversation and took place in a context of our standing in support of the Ukrainian people in this challenging time. No sensitive or confidential information was discussed.”

The spokesperson also said that the incident was reported to law enforcement.