Jerome Powell, chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve, during the Hoover Institution’s George P. Shultz Memorial Lecture Series in Stanford, California, Dec. 1, 2025.
Jason Henry | Bloomberg | Getty Images
The Federal Reserve has not yet complied with grand jury subpoenas issued as part of a criminal investigation of Fed Chair Jerome Powell by federal prosecutors in Washington, D.C., a person familiar with the situation told CNBC on Wednesday.
The probe of Powell is continuing, according to that person, who spoke hours before the Fed revealed its decision to hold interest rates steady.
Powell on Jan. 11 said he was under criminal investigation.
It is not clear when the deadline is for the Fed to turn over documents demanded by the subpoena.
CNBC has requested comment from the Fed and from the Department of Justice.
The probe is being conducted by the office of Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia.
Powell said on Jan. 11 that the DOJ days earlier had served the Fed “with grand jury subpoenas threatening a criminal indictment related to my testimony before the Senate Banking Committee last June” about the central bank’s $2.5 billion renovation of its headquarters.
Powell also said that the investigation resulted from frustration by President Donald Trump over the Fed‘s refusal to cut interest rates as quickly and as much as the president wanted last year.
“The threat of criminal charges is a consequence of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates based on our best assessment of what will serve the public, rather than following the preferences of the President,” Powell said in a video statement tweeted by the Fed’s X account.
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