A man in a blue suit stands in the centre of the image in front of a wall that says "Bureau" and has a large seal image of the FBI on it. A beam of light on the wall illuminates him slightly dramatically as he looks down.

FBI Director Chris Wray will step down from his post early next year, the bureau said on Wednesday, after U.S. president-elect Donald Trump signalled his intent to fire the veteran official and replace him with firebrand Kash Patel.