Fed inspector general says departing employee may have taken confidential information

The Federal Reserve’s inspector general said an employee may have taken confidential information when leaving the central bank, though the exact nature of the material has not been confirmed. The disclosure adds to earlier concerns raised by the inspector general’s office about information handling inside the Fed system. In a previous report, the office said some regional Federal Reserve bank directors received briefings from policymakers around monetary policy meetings, creating possible exposure to nonpublic information that could be used for personal benefit. The report also said a review of meeting records involving the Board and regional Fed presidents found cases where sensitive Federal Open Market Committee, or FOMC, information may have been disclosed to directors. The Federal Reserve Board disputed that conclusion, saying policymakers and staff are barred from providing directors with confidential FOMC information and that the briefings in question do not create a risk of directors obtaining such material.