Los Angeles insurance billionaire Don Hankey came to Trump’s rescue last year when he agreed to put up a $175 million bond for him. Now Hankey is set to get back his cash plus premiums.
Things are looking up for billionaire Don Hankey, whose firm put up a $175 million bond for Trump last year.
Ethan Pines for Forbes
A New York State appeals court on Thursday threw out a roughly $500 million fine that President Donald Trump had been ordered to pay last year as part of a civil fraud ruling against him. “While harm certainly occurred, it was not the cataclysmic harm that can justify a nearly half billion-dollar award to the State,” wrote Judge Peter Moulton in his decision. Trump was elated. “TOTAL VICTORY in the FAKE New York State Attorney General Letitia James Case!,” posted Trump on Truth Social last night. “
The ruling was also a win for billionaire Don Hankey, whose specialty insurance firm put up a $175 million bond for Trump last year while he was appealing the ruling.
Trump was told in late March 2024 that he had just 10 days to post the bond.That’s when Hankey stepped in. Within days, Hankey–who had built a fortune offering high-interest car loans–presented Trump with a promising deal. “I’d never met Donald Trump. I’d never talked to him on the phone. I heard that he needed a loan or a bond, and this is what we do. So, we reached out, and he responded,” Hankey told Forbes then. The deal was that the $175 million bond for Trump would be underwritten by Knight Specialty Insurance, a subsidiary of Hankey’s Knight Insurance Group. (The insurance firm is part of Hankey Group of Companies, a Los Angeles-based financial services group with units that specialize in subprime car loans and auto insurance, as well as real estate and a car rental company.)
The specialty insurer provided the bond, which spared Trump from forking over the $175 million himself at the time, or having to unload any assets in a fire sale. Trump’s collateral to secure the loans was a combination of cash and investment-grade bonds, according to Hankey, the chairman and majority owner of Knight Insurance. It is not known how much Trump agreed to pay in premiums for the bond.
While Trump and Hankey had never met or directly done deals, Hankey had previously done business indirectly with the president and his family. Hankey, who made the majority of his $7.8 billion fortune through his subprime auto lending businesses, confirmed to Forbes last year that he supported Donald Trump’s political campaigns and was the largest individual owner of Axos Financial, the lender that refinanced mortgages for some of Trump’s properties in 2022. Hankey told Forbes he had no visibility into these deals. Axos has also done business with Jared Kushner’s family.
Backing Trump seems to have paid off again. Knight Insurance says it is currently in the process of recouping the bond and funds and expects them to be released on Monday. “We are still on the bond and haven’t released it yet,” says Hankey, “We’re going to sign off next week.” It has also pocketed premiums, though won’t confirm how much. And while Attorney General Letitia James has stated she plans to appeal the decision, Hankey and his company are off the hook for now. Plus Trump may well remember Hankey’s support if the Los Angeles billionaire ever needs anything – not a bad card to hold.
But, for now at least, Trump—and thus Hankey and his insurance company—are off the hook.
Clinton Mora is a reporter for Trending Insurance News. He has previously worked for the Forbes. As a contributor to Trending Insurance News, Clinton covers emerging a wide range of property and casualty insurance related stories.