Explanation: The Federal Reserve is not funded by congressional appropriations. Its operations are financed primarily from the interest earned on the securities it owns—securities acquired in the course of the Federal Reserve's open market operations.
The Fed creates money by purchasing securities on the open market and adding the corresponding funds to the bank reserves of commercial banks.
The Federal Reserve does not “make” money exactly, in that it doesn’t print money — that’s the Treasury Department’s job. But it does serve as a bank for other banks and government agencies, allowing them to open accounts to hold their reserves, take out loans, issue government securities, and take other actions.
When it comes to other banks, the Fed is there to lend to them in case they have problems getting funding, either because of unexpected fluctuations in their loans and deposits or due to extreme events, such as the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the 2008 financial crisis, or the COVID-19 crisis.
The Fed lends at a higher rate than the market in order to ensure that it’s used as a last resort. The Federal Reserve does not lend money or provide bank accounts for individuals, as retail banks do. (Beware of scams that claim you can open an account with the Federal Reserve using your Social Security number.)
While the Federal Reserve does not actually print money, it does put in orders with the U.S. Treasury for “Federal Reserve notes” based on the demand it expects both domestically and internationally.
Federal Reserve notes are actually just another name for U.S. paper currency and no different from the dollars in normal circulation. For fiscal year 2022, the Federal Reserve’s board will be ordering between 6.9 billion and 9.7 billion notes, which will be valued at $310 billion and $356 billion. Most of these notes go to replacing bills that are no longer in usable condition.