'This is a business deal': Billionaire lays out reasons for posting Trump’s $175M bond

02 April 2024

Editor's Note: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that "former President Donald Trump needed someone to post a $175 bond." The article should have said "$175 million bond."

Former President Donald Trump needed someone to post a $175 million bond while he appeals Justice Arthur Engoron's sanctions in New York State Attorney General Letitia James' civil fraud lawsuit — and he found it in 80-year-old billionaire Don Hankey, chairman of the Knight Specialty Insurance Co.

Bloomberg News' Erik Larsen takes an in-depth look at Hankey in an article published on April 1, describing him as someone "whose fortune stems from car dealerships, real estate and financial services."

Hankey is richer than Trump. While Forbes has estimated Trump's total net worth to be around $2.6 billion, Forbes estimates that Hankey is worth $7.4 billion.

Larsen reports, "Hankey said Knight reached out to Trump's team to offer its services after hearing about the former president's trouble arranging a bond, which was initially set at 120 percent of the judgment, or about $540 million. The appeals court lowered the bond to $175 million after Trump said he didn't have enough cash."

Although Hankey has supported Trump politically, he doesn't know him personally.

The billionaire told Bloomberg News, "Yes, I voted for him in the past. But this is a business deal, and this is what we do. I have never met Donald Trump, nor talked to him on the phone."

Larsen notes that Knight Specialty Insurance Co. is "one of several affiliated companies that are part of the Los Angeles-based Hankey Group, a homegrown empire that also owns Westlake Financial Services, Hankey Capital and a Toyota dealership in North Hollywood."

Read Bloomberg News' full report at this link.

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