The United States Department of Justice recently launched a criminal investigation against Jerome Powell, which seriously compromises Federal Reserve independence at a critical economic moment. The central bank chair, Jerome Powell, denounced through an official video that these judicial actions are “pretexts” to exert political pressure on monetary policy. The announcement, made this Sunday, January 11, 2026, has generated an immediate reaction in the global financial markets due to the gravity of the charges.
On the other hand, federal prosecutors are investigating alleged irregularities related to the renovation of the institution’s headquarters in Washington, whose budget rose to 2.5 billion dollars. However, Powell maintains that the grand jury subpoenas received last Friday respond to his refusal to cut interest rates in an aggressive way. This direct confrontation between the judicial arm and the issuing body represents an unprecedented challenge to the economic credibility of the nation in the current landscape.
Likewise, the Donald Trump administration has maintained a critical stance toward Powell’s leadership, frequently calling him derogatory names for his cautious approach. Although the official’s term expires in May 2026, the threats of a possible criminal indictment have accelerated volatility in safe-haven assets. Therefore, analysts watch with concern how political tensions could fracture the monetary stability that has ruled for the last decades on American soil.
Impact of political uncertainty on the value of global safe-haven assets
Thus, the market reacted with a weakening of the dollar against a basket of international currencies during the last operating days. In this way, investors sought safety in precious metals, driving gold to historical levels above 4,640 dollars per ounce. The perception that Federal Reserve independence is under attack has eroded confidence in the traditional management of inflation and fiat currencies globally.
In addition, long-term Treasury bond yields showed upward movements due to fear of a politicized monetary policy. On the other hand, Bitcoin demonstrated notable resilience, staying stable in the $92,000 range while the traditional system faltered. Many financial traders believe that the digital asset is acting as a hedge against institutional risks and governance of central public policies at this moment.
Will the digital asset market manage to consolidate as the ultimate refuge in the face of the institutional crisis?
However, Bitcoin is still seen by some sectors as a high-volatility asset with a speculative nature in uncertain environments. Therefore, the debate over its role as digital gold has intensified following the allegations of government interference in the decisions of the central bank. Nevertheless, if distrust toward the dollar persists, it is likely that demand for non-sovereign crypto assets will increase significantly among large institutional fund managers.
Finally, the future of economic policy will depend on the resolution of this legal confrontation before the end of the first half of the year. Several former chairs of the body have issued joint statements to defend Federal Reserve independence against external attacks. The coming days are expected to be determining for restoring calm on Wall Street and defining the course of interest rates in 2026.
