Don Hankey: Meet the billionaire whose firm bailed out Donald Trump with US$175M

globalnews.ca:

Donald Trump managed to post a US$175 million bond on Monday while he appeals a New York judge’s ruling that he lied about his wealth to secure favourable loan terms.

In a February civil judgment, Trump was found to owe US$454 million, including interest, to the State of New York. The former president is appealing that ruling. To prevent the state from enforcing the judgment by seizing his assets, Trump was required to post a bond that would cover the judgment in the event he lost the appeal.

Trump’s lawyers argued it would be a “practical impossibility” for Trump to come up with the money, and an appellate court reduced the size of the bond to US$175 million. But Trump didn’t do it alone. The bond was underwritten by a company called Knight Specialty Insurance.

The firm is headed up by Los Angeles billionaire Don Hankey, known as the “king of subprime car loans,” according to a Forbes profile. Hankey started as a car dealer but built his fortune off high-interest auto loans for working-class people. Over the decades, his companies have run afoul of authorities for deceptive and illegal business practices.

Hankey also says he’s never met Trump, and that the decision to underwrite the bond was strictly about business, not politics.

“This is what we do,” he told NBC News. “I’d be happy to do this for a Republican or a Democrat.”

Here’s everything you need to know about the billionaire who bailed out Trump.

Hankey has made much of his money through Westlake Financial Services, a firm that works with tens of thousands of car dealerships across the U.S. to provide auto loans to people with bad or no credit.

Where other lenders saw risk, Hankey saw opportunity. He is now worth around US$7.4 billion off his subprime loan