U.S. prosecutors in D.C. launch criminal probe into Fed Chair Powell…suspected perjury over headquarters renovation

U.S. federal prosecutors are reported to have opened a preliminary inquiry into a matter involving Jerome Powell, chair of the Federal Reserve (Fed).

According to The New York Times (NYT) on the 11th (local time), the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia has launched a criminal investigation into Fed Chair Jerome Powell. The probe is focused on whether Powell made false statements to Congress in connection with the Fed’s Washington headquarters renovation project.

The investigation was initiated in November 2025 with approval from U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, and is said to include a review of Powell’s past public remarks and the Fed’s related spending records. Prosecutors are reported to be examining whether there were discrepancies between the project’s actual scale and Powell’s congressional testimony.

The total budget for the Fed headquarters renovation at issue was set at about $2.5 billion, and concerns have been raised that cost overruns of roughly $700 million could occur. As a result, the appropriateness of project management and budget execution also appears to have come under scrutiny.

Previously, Powell denied at a congressional hearing that the renovation included luxury facilities such as a private elevator or marble finishes. However, he later said that some designs and functions were adjusted during the course of the project. Meanwhile, the Fed has not issued an official comment on the investigation.