Trump Posts $175M Bond In New York Civil Fraud Case

By Heather — April 2, 2024

We all knew Trump wasn't going to be able to come up with the $464 million bond in his civil fraud case in New York, and now with the help of the New York appeals court, and some other sleazy characters as well, he's made his reduced bond of $175 million:

Former President Donald Trump has posted a $175 million bond as he appeals the judgment against him in the New York civil fraud case brought by state Attorney General Letitia James.

Trump’s bond pauses any action that James could take against Trump’s properties in response to the judgement until at least September, when the state appeals court also set a schedule to hear his appeal of the $464 million verdict against him.

The bond is underwritten by Knight Specialty Insurance, a California-based insurance company, but the court document does not list the collateral that Trump used to secure the bond.

Here's more from attorney Lisa Rubin on Knight Specialty Insurance:

NEW: The company that underwrote Trump's bond tonight in the NY Attorney General's civil fraud case, Knight Specialty Insurance Co., is owned by Don Hankey, the so-called "king of subprime car loans." But that's not all. 1/

— Lisa Rubin (@lawofruby) April 2, 2024

Hankey, who is #128 on Forbes’s 2023 list and #317 on the 2023 Forbes billionaires list, made his money in auto services. But he is also believed to be the largest shareholder in Axos Bank. 2/https://t.co/hoHunssVro

— Lisa Rubin (@lawofruby) April 2, 2024

If Axos sounds familiar, it's because it's the financial institution that refinanced Trump’s loans on Trump Tower and Doral in 2022. Specifically, Axos has loaned Trump $100 million in his refinancing of Trump Tower and another $125 million for Doral. 3/

— Lisa Rubin (@lawofruby) April 2, 2024

Both loans are not due until 2032, according to the Office of Government Ethics disclosure Trump made in August 2023. The list of his liabilities, as it appears in that filing and which references both Axos loans, is pasted below here. 4/ pic.twitter.com/3al5ncARFJ

— Lisa Rubin (@lawofruby) April 2, 2024

And here's more from reporter Zach Everson on what Trump used for collateral.

The bond was provided by California-based company Knight Insurance. Trump’s collateral to secure the loans was a combination of cash and investment-grade bonds, according to Don Hankey, the chairman of Knight Insurance.

Hankey told Forbes that his company had initiated the deal, reaching out to Trump just a few days before an appeals court lowered the amount Trump would have to pay while his appeal was heard. “This is what we do at Knight insurance,” said Hankey, who confirmed he had supported Trump’s political campaigns in the past. “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.” The deal, Hankey said, came together in just a few days.

Hankey, a billionaire who presides over an auto-services empire, may never have met Trump, but he was the largest individual owner of Axos Financial, the lender that bailed out Trump by refinancing his mortgages at Trump Tower and his Miami resort in 2022. Axos also previously had done business with the family of Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.

A spokesperson for Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment.