Don Hankey, CEO Who Backed Donald Trump, Has Connection to Trump Tower

Don Hankey, the chair of the company that helped former President Donald Trump secure bond in his civil fraud case, has a connection to Trump Tower.

Trump on Monday posted a $175 million bond in New York Attorney General Letitia James' civil business fraud case against him, preventing her from beginning to collect his assets while he appeals Judge Arthur Engoron's judgment against him.

Knight Specialty Insurance Company, a California-based company owned by the Hankey Group, posted the bond for Trump. Both organizations are led by Hankey, who has a net worth of more than $7 billion, according to Forbes.

Engoron in February ordered Trump to pay $355 million after siding with James in the civil suit, in which she accused Trump and top executives at The Trump Organization of conspiring to increase his net worth by billions of dollars on financial statements provided to banks and insurers to make deals and secure loans.

Since the ruling, Trump's debt has grown to $464 million due to interest. Engoron previously ruled that Trump would have to pay the sum to halt James' collection of his assets, but a court in March reduced the bond to the $175 million figure posted by Hankey's company.

Hankey's prior connections to Trump's businesses has been revealed following the bond announcement.

"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," MSNBC legal correspondent Lisa Rubin posted to X, formerly Twitter.

"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."

Forbes reported in 2023 that Hankey is the largest shareholder in Axos Bank, holding up to 6 percent of the company.

Meanwhile, documents previously reported by Newsweek showed that Axos Bank financed a $100 million mortgage on Trump Tower in New York City in February 2022. Earlier that month, Trump's former accounting firm, Mazars, dropped him as a client, warning future creditors that a decade's worth of his financial records "should no longer be relied upon."

Trump celebrated posting bond in a post to Truth Social on Monday, writing that his "financial statements were conservative and had a 100% perfect caution/non-reliance clause, there were no victims (except me!), there was no crime or damage, there was only success and HAPPY BANKS."

Had Trump not been able to post bond, James could have begun seizing his assets, including properties such as Trump Tower.