Don Hankey

Last updated

Don Hankey
Born
Don Robert Hankey

(1943-06-13) June 13, 1943 (age 81)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Alma mater University of Southern California
Occupation(s)Founder, Hankey Group
SpouseMarried
Children4

Don Robert Hankey (born June 13, 1943) is an American billionaire [1] and founder of the Hankey Group, which makes most of its income from car loans and the insurance industry. He has been called the "king of the subprime car loan". [2]

Contents

Early life

Don Robert Hankey was born on June 13, 1943, in Los Angeles, California, [3] the son of a Los Angeles car dealer. He has a degree from University of Southern California. [4]

Career

Hankey took over his father's Ford dealership in 1972, and built the Hankey Group, with its main business being Westlake Financial Services, [5] which makes subprime car loans [4] [6] at high interest. The company was reported to repossess about 250 cars a day in 2015. [2]

In October 2015, Westlake Financial was ordered by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to provide $44.1 million in consumer relief for engaging in illegal debt collection practices. Westlake Financial and its affiliate Wilshire Consumer Credit deceived borrowers into thinking they were being called by repossession companies, other third parties, or even the borrowers’ own family and friends. The Bureau also found that the companies unlawfully disclosed information about borrowers’ debts to employers, family, and friends. The companies also failed to disclose the annual percentage rate on certain loans as required by law. In some cases, the companies changed the due dates or extended the terms of loans without borrowers’ permission, causing more interest to accrue, while telling consumers that the extensions would have a positive effect. These practices violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the Truth in Lending Act, and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Financial Protection Act. [7]

Hankey is the Chairman of Hankey Capital, a private lender originating bridge debt secured by commercial real estate located in California between $10 and $500 million. Specializing in time-sensitive and value-added deals Hankey Capital gravitates towards opportunities underserved by traditional sources of capital. Hankey Capital lent Nile Niami $82.5 million for construction of The One in 2018. [8] Hankey is also a real estate investor in Downtown Los Angeles. [9] Sister company Hankey Investment Company owns over a million square feet of commercial property and 500,000 square feet of urban development land in Southern California. In November 2024, Hankey beat a labor union appeal made by Supporters Alliance for Environmental Responsibility, which called for a halt to the building of a 163-unit apartment complex in the Los Angeles Koreatown area, arguing that the project should face more scrutiny under the California Environmental Quality Act. [10]

In September 2022, Westlake Financial agreed to pay more than $225,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) by failing to provide qualified servicemembers with interest rate benefits for the entire period required under the SCRA and by improperly delaying approval of interest rate benefit requests. [11]

Don Hankey has donated to the Republican National Committee, such as his $33,400 donation in August 2016 while acting Chairman of NOWCOM, [12] and a $1,590 donation to the Republican Party of Wyoming PAC during the same month. [13] [14]

Hankey is the largest individual shareholder of Axos Financial, [15] the company that refinanced former U.S. president Donald Trump's mortgages on Trump Tower in New York City and on Trump National Doral in Miami in 2022. [16] He owns Knight Insurance Group and is chairman of Knight Specialty Insurance Company, which issued the $175 million bond Donald Trump posted in April 2024 to stay enforcement of a judgment for $464 million plus interest while he appeals it in a civil fraud case. [15] [17] [18] [2]

As of April 2024 he was reported to have a net worth of US$7.4 billion. [4]

Personal life

Hankey is married with four children, and lives in Malibu, California. [4] In April 2020, his son, Don Hankey Jr. was involved in a court case for sexual assault, wrongful imprisonment, sex trafficking, and wrongful death against three unnamed female plaintiffs in his luxurious Los Angeles estate. His son's court case was represented by well known attorney Keith Davidson, who represented the pornographic film actress, Stormy Daniels against Donald Trump. [19] [20]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loan</span> Lending of money

In finance, a loan is the tender of money by one party to another with an agreement to pay it back. The recipient, or borrower, incurs a debt and is usually required to pay interest for the use of the money.

Alternative financial services in the United States refers to a particular type of financial service, namely subprime or near-prime lending by non-bank financial institutions. This branch of the financial services industry is more extensive in the United States than in some other countries, because the major banks in the U.S. are less willing to lend to people with marginal credit ratings than their counterparts in many other countries. Examples of these companies include Springleaf, Duvera Financial, Inc., Lendmark Financial Services, Inc., HSBC Finance, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and Monterey Financial Services, Inc. The more generic name "consumer finance" is also used, although more properly this term applies to financing for any type of consumer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Payday loan</span> Short-term unsecured loan

A payday loan is a short-term unsecured loan, often characterized by high interest rates. These loans are typically designed to cover immediate financial needs and are intended to be repaid on the borrower's next payday.

Predatory lending refers to unethical practices conducted by lending organizations during a loan origination process that are unfair, deceptive, or fraudulent. While there are no internationally agreed legal definitions for predatory lending, a 2006 audit report from the office of inspector general of the US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) broadly defines predatory lending as "imposing unfair and abusive loan terms on borrowers", though "unfair" and "abusive" were not specifically defined. Though there are laws against some of the specific practices commonly identified as predatory, various federal agencies use the phrase as a catch-all term for many specific illegal activities in the loan industry. Predatory lending should not be confused with predatory mortgage servicing which is mortgage practices described by critics as unfair, deceptive, or fraudulent practices during the loan or mortgage servicing process, post loan origination.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Truth in Lending Act</span> 1968 US law making credit practices more transparent

The Truth in Lending Act (TILA) of 1968 is a United States federal law designed to promote the informed use of consumer credit, by requiring disclosures about its terms and cost to standardize the manner in which costs associated with borrowing are calculated and disclosed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ally Financial</span> American financial services company

Ally Financial Inc. is a bank holding company incorporated in Delaware and headquartered at Ally Detroit Center in Detroit, Michigan. The company provides financial services including car finance, online banking via a direct bank, corporate lending, vehicle insurance, mortgage loans, and other related financing services such as installment sale and lease agreements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Title loan</span> Secured loan using borrowers vehicle title as collateral

A title loan is a type of secured loan where borrowers can use their vehicle title as collateral. Borrowers who get title loans must allow a lender to place a lien on their car title, and temporarily surrender the hard copy of their vehicle title, in exchange for a loan amount. When the loan is repaid, the lien is removed and the car title is returned to its owner. If the borrower defaults on their payments then the lender is liable to repossess the vehicle and sell it to repay the borrowers’ outstanding debt.

In finance, subprime lending is the provision of loans to people in the United States who may have difficulty maintaining the repayment schedule. Historically, subprime borrowers were defined as having FICO scores below 600, although this threshold has varied over time.

The Community Financial Services Association of America (CFSA) is a trade association in the United States representing the payday lending industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OneMain Financial</span> American financial services company

OneMain Holdings, Inc. is an American financial services holding company headquartered in Evansville, Indiana, with central offices throughout the United States. The company wholly owns OneMain Finance Corporation and its subsidiaries, through which it operates in the consumer finance and insurance industries as OneMain Financial. Its business primarily focuses on providing personal loans and optional insurance products to customers with limited access to traditional lenders, such as banks and credit card companies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Consumer Financial Protection Bureau</span> United States government agency

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for consumer protection in the financial sector. CFPB's jurisdiction includes banks, credit unions, securities firms, payday lenders, mortgage-servicing operations, foreclosure relief services, debt collectors, for-profit colleges, and other financial companies operating in the United States. Since its founding, the CFPB has used technology tools to monitor how financial entities used social media and algorithms to target consumers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Payday loans in the United States</span> Overview of payday loans

A payday loan is a small, short-term unsecured loan, "regardless of whether repayment of loans is linked to a borrower's payday." The loans are also sometimes referred to as "cash advances," though that term can also refer to cash provided against a prearranged line of credit such as a credit card. Payday advance loans rely on the consumer having previous payroll and employment records. Legislation regarding payday loans varies widely between different countries and, within the United States, between different states.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2007–2008 financial crisis</span> Worldwide economic crisis

The 2007–2008 financial crisis, or the global financial crisis (GFC), was the most severe worldwide economic crisis since the 1929 Wall Street crash that began the Great Depression. Causes of the crisis included predatory lending in the form of subprime mortgages to low-income homebuyers and a resulting housing bubble, excessive risk-taking by global financial institutions, and lack of regulatory oversight, which culminated in a "perfect storm" that triggered the Great Recession, which lasted from late 2007 to mid-2009. The financial crisis began in early 2007, as mortgage-backed securities (MBS) tied to U.S. real estate, as well as a vast web of derivatives linked to those MBS, collapsed in value. Financial institutions worldwide suffered severe damage, reaching a climax with the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers on September 15, 2008, and a subsequent international banking crisis.

PennyMac Financial Services, Inc. is an American residential mortgage company headquartered in Westlake Village, California. The company's business focuses on the production and servicing of U.S. mortgage loans and the management of investments related to the U.S. mortgage market. PennyMac operates through two subsidiaries: PennyMac Loan Services, LLC and PNMAC Capital Management, LLC. The latter manages the PennyMac Mortgage Investment Trust, a mortgage REIT.

Navient Corporation is an American student loan servicer based in Wilmington, Delaware. Managing nearly $300 billion in student loans for more than 12 million debtors, the company was formed in 2014 by the split of Sallie Mae into two distinct entities: Sallie Mae Bank and Navient. Navient employs 6,000 people at offices across the U.S. As of 2018, Navient services 25% of student loans in the United States.

Nile Niami is an American former film producer turned real estate developer, who has developed and sold multimillion-dollar mansions in the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Bel Air and Holmby Hills.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rohit Chopra</span> American consumer advocate (born 1982)

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">The One (Los Angeles)</span> Mansion in California, U.S.

The One is a private residence in Bel Air, Los Angeles, California, United States. It is a compound of a main residence and three smaller houses in the modernist style and was developed by Nile Niami. The property is 105,000 square feet (9,800 m2) on 3.8 acres (1.5 ha).

References

  1. ↑ "Don Hankey Forbes Profile". Forbes. Retrieved April 4, 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 Noah, Timothy (April 2, 2024). "Trump Has Hocked Himself to the Repo Man". The New Republic.
  3. ↑ "Don Robert Hankey". California Birth Index. Retrieved September 5, 2015.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Don Hankey". Forbes. Retrieved April 3, 2024. Updated as required.
  5. ↑ "About Don Hankey, Chairman of the Board of Westlake Financial Services and other Hankey Group properties". Westlake Financial Services. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  6. ↑ Peterson-Withorn, Chase (November 24, 2015). "Subprime Supremo: Don Hankey Made A Fortune On High-Interest Car Loans -- Now He's Uber's Partner". Forbes. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
  7. ↑ Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (October 1, 2015). "CFPB Orders Indirect Auto Finance Company to Provide Consumers $44.1 Million in Relief for Illegal Debt Collection Tactics" (Press release). CFPB.
  8. ↑ "Foreclosure looms for Nile Niami's infamous mega-mansion 'The One'". Los Angeles Times. March 9, 2021.
  9. ↑ Vincent, Roger (January 19, 2014). "Downtown L.A.'s South Park catching a wave of new development". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
  10. ↑ Dana Bartholomew (November 20, 2024). "Hankey Overcomes Appeal Against Koreatown Apartment Highrise" (Press release). Real Deal Real Estate News.
  11. ↑ U.S. Attorney's Office, Central District of California (September 28, 2022). "Westlake Financial to Pay More Than $225,000 to Resolve Servicemembers Civil Relief Act Claims" (Press release). U.S. Dept. of Justice.
  12. ↑ NOWCOM. "Don Hankey, Founder/CEO of NOWCOM". Hankey Group. Retrieved April 4, 2024.
  13. ↑ OpenSecrets.org. "Donor Lookup - Don Hankey". OpenSecrets. Retrieved April 4, 2024.
  14. ↑ OpenSecrets.org. "Donor Lookup - Don Hankey". OpenSecrets. Retrieved April 4, 2024.
  15. 1 2 Everson, Zach (April 2, 2024). "Trump Posts $175 Million Bond Thanks To Billionaire Don Hankey". Forbes . Retrieved April 2, 2024.
  16. ↑ Everson, Zach (August 12, 2023). "CEO Of Trump's New Lender Sells $11 Million Of His Bank's Stock". Forbes . Retrieved April 2, 2024.
  17. ↑ Sisak, Michael R.; Peltz, Jennifer (April 2, 2024). "Donald Trump has posted a $175 million bond to avert asset seizure as he appeals NY fraud penalty". Associated Press . Retrieved April 2, 2024.
  18. ↑ Katersky, Aaron; Charalambous, Peter (April 2, 2024). "Trump secures $175 million bond in New York civil fraud case". ABC News . Retrieved April 2, 2024.
  19. ↑ "Don Hankey Jr v. Jane Doe et al". Trellis. April 27, 2020.
  20. ↑ "Stormy Daniels Ex Attorney Keith Davidson Representing Son of Don Hankey, Hankey Group". Forbes.
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