JPMorgan CEO slams DOJ probe of Jerome Powell, warning investigation could stoke inflation

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon slammed the Trump administration’s move to open an investigation into Fed Chair Jerome Powell over the $2.5 billion revamp of its headquarters, warning that threats to the central bank’s independence could raise interest rates and stoke inflation.GOP lawmakers and White House insiders accuse Powell of lying to Congress about the work during his testimony in June, prompting US Attorney Jeanine Pirro to step in and order the probe.But JPMorgan boss Jamie Dimon, speaking during a media call to unveil the bank’s fourth-quarter results, defended Powell, saying “anything that chips away” at the central bank’s independence “is not a good idea.”“In my view, it will have the reverse consequences.It will raise inflation expectations and probably increase rates over time,” the 69-year-old Wall Street veteran said.The Post broke the news last April about the plan to push ahead with splashy renovations, running $700 million over budget, to the organization’s headquarters at a time when it is losing money.

It prompted critics to accuse Fed officials of behaving like French royalty building “the Palace of Versailles.”Powell’s term as chair is set to end in May, with Kevin Hassett, President Trump’s top economic adviser, in the frame to replace him.BNY chief executive Robin Vince echoed Dimon’s criticism as the company reported record revenue for 2025 on Tuesday.The British-born Goldman alum said the move to investigate Powell is “counterproductive” to the administration’s goal of improving affordability.“Questioning one of the tenets that underlies the bond market runs the risk of actually doing the opposite of that,” Vince said.

“Independent central banks with the ability to independently set monetary policy in the long-term interests of the nation is a pretty well-established thing that we’ve seen all around the world over a very long period of time,” Vince said.Jeremy Barnum, JPMorgan Chase’s bea...