The appeal bond of $175 million (or 162.2 million euros) saved Donald Trump from having his assets confiscated. Spencer Platt/Getty
Billionaire Don Hankey’s company has taken on a deposit of $175 million or €162.2 million for Donald Trump.
Hankey’s net worth is estimated at $7.4 billion. He runs a $22.5 billion (€20.86 billion) automotive empire.
Hankey is known for helping finance “The One” mansion in Bel Air, which failed at auction.
This is a machine translation of an article from our US colleagues at Business Insider. It was automatically translated and checked by a real editor.
Billionaire Don Hankey stepped in on Monday and bailed out Donald Trump for $175 million. In doing so, he saved the former president from having his assets ripped out from under him while he appeals his civil fraud case.
The 80-year-old heads the Hankey Group, which employs more than 3,400 people and reports assets Forbes is worth around 22.5 billion US dollars (the equivalent of around 20.86 billion euros). The empire consists of eight companies in the automotive, financial, technology, real estate and insurance industries.
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Hankey regularly supports Trump but has reportedly never met him
Hankey’s Knight Specialty Insurance provided Trump’s bail on Monday, three days before the deadline. It’s not the first time Hankey has been financially tied to a company that helped Trump out of a potential jam, although the businessman told Bloomberg he didn’t do so for political reasons.
“Yes, I have voted for him in the past, but this is a business and this is what we do,” Hankey said in one Interview with Bloomberg about the $175 million bail. “I have never met Donald Trump or spoken to him on the phone.”
Hankey told the news service that he also invested in Axos Bank, which refinanced Trump Tower in 2022 for $100 million (about 92.7 million euros), after the previous loan of that amount was placed on the watchlist for debt had been placed. But his investment in Axos Bank had nothing to do with Trump’s bail.
Axos Bank CEO Greg Garrabrants has donated around $50,000 to Republican campaigns since 2012. Of this, 9,600 US dollars (almost 8,900 euros) went to support Trump, according to the report Records from the Federal Election Authority show.
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The entrepreneur worked his way from car washer to billionaire
Hankey’s net worth is loud Forbes estimated at 7.4 billion US dollars (or 6.86 billion euros). It has almost doubled in the last three years.
Hankey grew up washing and polishing cars and later worked as a salesman at his father’s Ford dealership. In 1972 he took it over completely and built his empire from it, as Bloomberg reported.
An aerial view of the Bel Air Los Angeles neighborhood with mansions and golf course. David Sucsy/Getty
His Forbes profile calls him the “little-known king of subprime auto loans.” Its largest company, Westlake Financial Services, operates as a subprime financing company. It has a net worth, according to the Hankey Group website von 16.8 billion US dollars (or 15.5 billion euros). Westlake works with car dealers nationwide to provide loans to people with poor or non-existent credit.
The group also owns a real estate company, Hankey Investment Company LP. According to Hankey Group’s website, the company owns 488,343 square feet of commercial real estate and 12 million square feet of urban development land in Southern California.
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Honkey invested in “The One”
The billionaire caused a stir two years ago when he reportedly invested $82.5 million (€76.49 million) in Nile Niami-developed mega-villa The One in Bel Air. The 9,754 square foot property has 21 bedrooms and 42 full baths. It also includes a 4,000-square-foot guest house and a long list of luxury amenities such as multiple infinity pools, a nightclub, a spa, a beauty salon, a bowling alley, and a movie theater.
The One in Bel Air is a 9,754 square foot property. Allen J. Schaben/Getty
However, a lack of interest in the property led to financial problems for the developer, Nial Niamis Crestlloyd, who was forced to declare bankruptcy. The villa was ultimately auctioned for less than half of its expected value of $500 million (equivalent to €463.5 million).
Hankey became involved in some of the legal disputes over ownership of the property. But he said that after that sale The Los Angeles Business Journal reported that the property had received all of its capital commitments back.
Hankey attended the University of Southern California and currently resides in Malibu. He has been married to Debbie Hankey for 40 years and has four children, like Forbes“ reported.
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