Dec 16 (Reuters) - Citadel's CEO Ken Griffin has urged President Donald Trump to create "distance" between the Federal Reserve and the White House, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, as economic adviser Kevin Hassett emerges as one of the frontrunners to lead the U.S. central bank.

Trump has identified Hassett, director of the White House National Economic Council, and Kevin Warsh, a former Fed governor, as leading contenders to replace current Fed chair Jerome Powell, whose term ends in May.

"The most important move the president and the incoming Fed chairman can make... is to create distance between the White House and the Fed," Griffin said, when asked whether Hassett should lead the Fed, the report added.

Griffin's comments were made at an event in Paris, the Financial Times added.

Citadel, the hedge fund founded by billionaire Griffin, did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for a statement.

Earlier in the day, Hassett said in an interview with CNBC that, "The Federal Reserve's independence is really, really important."