Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh faced a grilling on Capitol Hill Wednesday, and Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) came armed with a pointed question: Who gave you $100 million right before you were sworn in?

The exchange came during Warsh's second day of monetary policy testimony. Warren pressed him on a $100 million amount he was required to divest after becoming Fed chair—money whose source he has refused to disclose. She wanted to know if it came from someone who profits from Fed decisions.

"Who gave you $100 million right before you were sworn in? Was it a billionaire who has business with the Fed?" Warren asked. She specifically named billionaire investor Stanley Druckenmiller, asking if he or another billionaire provided the funds.

Warsh's ties to Druckenmiller are well-documented. After leaving the Fed in 2011, Warsh joined Druckenmiller's Duquesne Family Office. He also previously invested tens of millions of dollars in the Juggernaut Fund, which was linked to Druckenmiller's firm. Those investments have since been divested.

Warsh didn't directly answer Warren's question but assured her he would fully comply with the Office of Government Ethics.

Warren also probed Warsh about a potential ethics issue involving his colleague, Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman. In June, the Wall Street Journal reported that Bowman attended a private gathering of bankers organized by Bank of America (BAC) shortly after a Fed meeting, where she discussed interest rates. That could have violated the Fed's "blackout period" policy, which bans officials from discussing monetary policy around the time of meetings.

Warsh didn't confirm whether he had addressed the issue with Bowman, saying the matter is under investigation by the Fed's inspector general, Michael Horowitz.

Debate Over Warsh's Leadership

Warsh's appointment as Fed chair was controversial from the start. In May 2026, Warren called him President Donald Trump's "sock puppet," accusing him of trying to control interest rates. She argued the appointment was "not good for working families—it's good for Wall Street."

Warsh's first appearance before Congress as Fed chief drew mixed reactions. Some praised his communication style and reform agenda, while others remained skeptical. Market strategist James Thorne said Warsh's remarks signaled a shift away from a model-driven framework toward one grounded in real economic performance, supply-side expansion, and institutional credibility.

Economist Mohamed El-Erian praised Warsh's new Task Force appointments, saying they reflect a serious commitment to reforming the central bank. He said the team's expertise could strengthen the Fed's effectiveness, credibility, and political independence.