WASHINGTON, January 12. /TASS/. Jerome Powell, the head of the US Federal Reserve System (the Fed, which acts as the central bank), said that the Justice Department is preparing to bring criminal charges against him.

"On Friday [January 9], the Department of Justice served the Federal Reserve with grand jury subpoenas, threatening a criminal indictment related to my testimony before the Senate Banking Committee last June," Powell said in a statement posted on the Fed's website. According to the regulator’s head, his testimony concerned the project to renovate the Fed's building complex. Powell pointed out that "this unprecedented action should be seen in the broader context of the [US President Donald Trump] administration's threats and ongoing pressure."

The US Fed Chair emphasized that the investigation is merely a pretext and that the real reason is that the Fed "sets interest rates based on the best assessment of what will serve the public, rather than following the preferences of the president." Powell stressed that he intends to continue to fulfill his duties as head of the Fed.

Earlier, Trump noted that he was considering filing a lawsuit against the current head of the Federal Reserve. Trump's statements suggested that the basis for such a lawsuit could be plans for a major renovation of the Federal Reserve headquarters in Washington DC, the cost of which the White House had previously called unreasonably inflated.

Trump has repeatedly and harshly criticized Powell, suggesting that he would seek his dismissal. The US leader emphasized that, in his opinion, the Fed should consistently lower the base interest rate. Trump claimed that the Fed deliberately did not do so in order to keep borrowing costs for the US government high. Powell has repeatedly stated that he does not intend to resign. His term expires in May.

The Fed was established by the US Congress in 1913 as an independent organization within the federal government. Officially, the Fed reports directly to Congress, not to the president.