Wall Street has become an economy unto itself. The Fed has helped to inflate the stock market, by holding interest rates so low for so long.
The only thing learned from the 2008 financial crisis is that the Federal Reserve and Treasury will always do everything possible to help Wall Street. For some at the Fed, their actions have apparently been helping themselves.
(Editor’s note [from CNBC]: This story has been updated to reflect new information. Fed Chair Powell owned the municipal bonds in question in a joint account over which he had control. Due to incorrect information provided by the Federal Reserve, CNBC reported initially that Powell owned the munis in a family trust over which he had no control.)
https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/17/fed-officials-owned-securities-it-was-buying-during-pandemic-raising-more-questions-about-conflicts.html